Scientific Pursuits
by Ezra Quinn
Summary: After Bruce accidentally seduces Tony, the two men make a habit of it, but then things take a turn for the worse when jealousy inevitably makes a dramatic appearance. They evaluate their relationship: is it sex for the sake of sex, or is it something more? Angst, smut, and snark unite to tell this tale of two science bros.
1. Test Ride

"Incredible…" A voice echoed quietly across Tony's lab. He'd just come down to take one of the suits for a ride, going against Pepper's advice that he should get some sleep for a public appearance the next morning. But now he paused, wondering who was wandering around his workspace.

Tony followed the voice to where he stored his suits, and found Dr. Banner poking around at the left arm of the newest suit that Tony was working on, and had yet to complete to his liking. The doctor was using a pocket flashlight in the dark cave-like space, apparently unaware of the recess lighting above his head.

"Jarvis, don't be rude. Let Dr. Banner have some light," Tony called out to Jarvis, who complied politely.

"Oh! Mr. Stark!" Dr. Banner started at Tony's voice, pocketing the flashlight when lights above him illuminated the space where he stood.

"Tony," the genius corrected him, shoving his hands in the back pockets of his jeans and staring intently at the intruder.

"Sorry. I was just curious… I mean, I've heard so much about your work, I couldn't help but come see it for myself. I apologize if I'm intruding," the doctor made to step away from the suit, but Tony waved a hand in the air dismissively and walked towards him.

"Don't be. If anyone's to blame here, it's my incompetent assistant who apparently just lets anyone in who says 'please.'"

"Sir, Dr. Banner had the correct keycode, which implies that permission had been granted previously," Jarvis replied, showing video playback of Dr. Banner descending the stairs and entering the access code off a scrap of paper in his hand.

"Did he?" Tony asked, surprised; he stopped walking halfway across the room and raised an eyebrow at the doctor who looked like a child caught in the act of stealing candy.

"Your, um," Dr. Banner began, then hesitated, "Miss Potts gave it to me yesterday when I asked."

"Girlfriend, Dr. Banner; and CEO bossypants who just gives access codes to everybody now, apparently," Tony muttered, half to himself.

"I'm sorry, Tony; I assumed that since—" The doctor seemed genuinely concerned about his invasion of Tony's space.

"Lighten up, doctor, I'm not the one who turns into a crazy rage machine when I'm angry. I just get sassy," on his last word, Tony lisped the s's and raised a flirtatious eyebrow at the doctor for half a second before relaxing his face again and walking towards his latest suit.

"Thanks for the reminder, thank you," Dr. Banner sighed and shook his head in annoyance.

"If you're going to become angry, Dr. Banner, I'd like to request that you exit the premises, as I don't want you destroying my stuff. It's very expensive stuff."

"It's Bruce, and I'll keep that in mind, especially with how short on cash you must be."

Tony paused in his inspection of the suit and said, "Point taken," and clapping his hands, continued, "Now that we've properly insulted each other, let's get back to science, shall we? What do you think of it?" Tony gestured to the suit that stood half-finished between himself and Dr. Banner.

"It's impressive! The mechanics are so intricate, and so simple at the same time! Of course, I expected no less of the mind behind Stark Industries, but it's very impressive," Bruce gushed, examining the wiring inside the left arm again.

Tony didn't smile at the praise; of course, he was used to it, being a genius from such a young age, but he looked genuinely interested in Dr. Banner's opinion nonetheless. "I hear a but in there, Dr. Banner." The doctor hesitated, glancing at Tony nervously before looking back at the suit, then at the completed suits, and stepping down from the platform.

"No, no buts. Your work is very impressive."

"Don't lie, Dr. Angry. I know a thing or two about buts. I get a lot of ass in this business of mine, if you know what I mean, and I know a but when I see it. What's your beef? Too flashy? That's a common complaint, but there's no such thing in my book. Ineffective use of the reactor's power? Oh, I could debate you on that one until the cows come home. What is it, doctor? Let me have it." Tony's words, in alignment with his personality, came out in an arrogant rush and ended in a tone that translated into a dare.

Bruce smiled shyly, which frustrated Tony; the man was clearly a genius, or else he wouldn't be here, but yet there he stood, being bashful like he didn't know a damn thing. "It's not a problem with any of the hardware, Tony. It's the software; I'm really curious about it. Everybody can see the hardware plainly enough when you're… you know, out there, doing your thing, but the software isn't something the public gets to see. But I'm not the public, and I want to get a look at it."

"Didn't need the speech to convince me, you only had to say, 'Show me.' C'mere," Tony walked around the suit to Bruce and threw a strong arm around his shoulders, steering him towards the central platform of the basement. "From one genius to another, I give you Iron Man: behind the mask!" Tony made a gesture across one of his LCD panels, and the circular platform came to life with bright colors and the whirring of computer hardware. "That'd be a catchy name for an exhibit, don't you think? Nobody would understand half of it, though, so let's keep this between us, 'kay?" Tony clicked his tongue and winked before stepping away from the stunned doctor to showcase his life's work.

Tony's explanation was a rush of words and gratuitous gesticulations across the various screens suspended around the platform. At first, Bruce simply watched, enamored by the advanced software that was suspended and glowing around him, but as he began to understand its functions, he joined in with Tony in sweeping his arms across the screens and talking a mile a minute as his fingers flew across the keypads and keyboards that Jarvis obediently opened for them.

"This is incredible," Bruce breathed several minutes later, running a hand through his hair, stepping back towards the center of the platform and smiling in awe. "I have never seen technology like this coming from one man alone. I've seen something like it from corporations and military units, but those were teams of professionals. This is truly incredible. _You_ are incredible, Tony!" He laughed and shook Tony's hand enthusiastically, but Tony simply shrugged.

"I'm a genius with a heart condition. Not much else to it," Tony said with a smirk, tapping on the arc reactor in his chest.

"Could I-?" Bruce began, his enthusiasm giving way to shyness.

"Oh, definitely, yeah," Tony immediately removed his shirt without hesitation, and spread his arms from his sides as invitation. "I let my secretary reach inside it, and she had no idea what she was doing. You're a professional, so of course _you_ can look at it."

"Your secretary?" Bruce asked, raising his eyebrows as he approached Tony to examine the reactor, "I thought you said she was your girlfriend."

Tony shrugged, causing the muscles in his neck to tense up for a moment, "She's also the CEO. She's a lot of things." He paused. "But a genius isn't one of them," Tony added as he watched Bruce taking a closer look at the reactor, though the top of Bruce's curly brown hair was all he could see. "It's nice to have an intellectual peer who actually understands what I'm saying. You should visit more often. I could use someone to talk to around here."

"I am capable of conversation, sir," Jarvis offered, but Tony ignored him.

"Hardly any scarring… remarkable," Bruce was muttering when he accidentally brushed a hand against one of Tony's nipples.

Tony sucked in a sharp breath, not having expected that, and said, "Watch it, Angry! I am still human, you know. Nerve endings and all."

"Sorry!" Bruce replied, holding his hands in the air as if surrendering. He continued to examine the skin surrounding the reactor, so closely now that his nose and breath were in constant contact with Tony's chest. With each warm breath, Tony felt a tightening sensation in his chest and wondered how long it would take Bruce to notice that his heart rate was increasing.

Dr. Banner finally found what he'd been looking for: scar tissue. It was very faint, but the shape of it was what he was most concerned with. He gently traced his index finger over it, and Tony gasped.

"You still have sensation there?" Bruce asked, surprised, looking up at Tony.

"Yes, quite a lot, actually," Tony cleared his throat and looked away.

"Really?" Bruce looked pensive for a moment, and then clarity swept across his face suddenly. "Oh! Sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"Calm yourself, Angry. I know you weren't trying to test the functionality of my blood pressure," Tony said with a smirk.

Realizing what Tony meant, Bruce looked down and stumbled backwards a step. "Oh. Sorry, I…" he stopped himself from apologizing and cracked a shy smile. "This is awkward."

"Only if you keep standing there." Bruce smirked and made to walk away, but Tony grabbed his arm and managed to growl, "That's not what I meant" before roughly turning the doctor around and smashing his lips against Bruce's.

An extremely satisfied moan hit the back of Tony's throat as Bruce leaned into the kiss to the extent that he realized he was straddling Tony's left thigh. He was already hard from the kissing, as it had been years since he'd had any action. Tony was a hard but skilled kisser, his tongue fucking Bruce's mouth like their lives depended on it.

Suddenly, a muffled sound came from Bruce's mouth and he withdrew from Tony, panting and gasping. "Needed… air," he managed to gasp, and Tony took this opportunity to size up the doctor; it was painfully obvious how desperately he needed this.

Bruce began unbuttoning his shirt, and Tony saw that the tips of his fingers were tinged slightly green. "Your fingers…" Tony managed to mumble as he too began undressing.

"It's fine… it happens. Just don't piss me off, and don't let me top," Bruce explained breathlessly, pausing when he'd undone his shirt. He was scanning Tony's face for any signs of fear or hesitation, but Tony's eyes were wide for an entirely different reason.

"Jarvis! Bed, now!" Tony shouted through his shirt as he tore it off and advanced towards Bruce. Their hard-ons made contact just before their lips, and so both men groaned loudly into each other's mouths as they began kissing even more desperately than before. There was a low mechanical whir in the background, followed by a click. At the click, Tony pulled away from Bruce, and with a firm grip on his ass, shoved Bruce ahead of him in the direction of a bed that had lowered itself from a hidden niche in the wall.

"You would," Bruce managed to say with a low laugh as he hurried towards the bed ahead of Tony.

"I do," Tony smirked, and shoved Bruce backwards onto the bed.

As they hastily started undoing their pants, Bruce asked, "How did you know?"

"You're a doctor of science, Banner, not medicine. You had only one reason to be examining my chest like that."

Bruce laughed, but was cut off when Tony had finally stripped out of his boxers and launched himself at the muscular man in his bed. Tony wasted no time in venturing down, lips and tongue first, towards Bruce's groin. He took the doctor's cock down his throat in full right away, causing a feral sound to rip from Bruce's throat. This egged Tony on, and he worked his throat around Bruce's already leaking hard-on while toying with his balls with his free hand.

Bruce was writhing in agony, and he couldn't believe was Tony was doing to his body. He shouldn't be surprised that the man who connects tiny wires to each other in impossible spaces had such excellent command of his hands. And that throat, with the muscles working around him like that, he couldn't even begin to—"_Holy fuck!_ Tony! Fucking… _fuck me!"_

Tony moaned as he slowly withdrew from Bruce's cock and took a moment to pump his own in anticipation. Bruce groaned impatiently, and Tony turned around and dug in the drawer of the desk nearby for a bottle of lube and a condom. "Where the _fuck _is the—Got it!" He slathered some onto his fingers and leaned forward to tease Bruce's hole with his tongue. He traced around it, pushed barely inside of it, and used a single finger to start opening him up. He was absent-mindedly jerking his own cock while he started tongue-fucking Bruce's entrance.

Expletives flew from Bruce's mouth and he squeezed his eyes shut, beginning to see stars as Tony introduced a second finger. He was pumping his cock slowly, almost lazily when Tony unexpectedly introduced a third finger, and Bruce howled with delight at the new intrustion that stretched him even wider.

Tony's hard-on was aching desperately now, and Bruce was ready for him, moaning and thrusting through his fist. Tony had grabbed a condom with the lube, and quickly slid it down his pulsating length. He used his prepped hand to slick himself up some more, kneeling between Bruce's legs. The doctor tried to spread his legs wider than they could go, and so Tony took them and hoisted them up onto his shoulders, for a better angle and a better view.

Tony had originally intended to tease Bruce into a writhing mess before fully penetrating him, but once the tip of his cock made contact with the edge of Bruce's entrance, he bit down on his lip and couldn't hesitate any longer. He pushed himself in slightly, meaning to allow Bruce time to adjust, but the doctor had other plans.

"Hnng! More!" Bruce begged through gritted teeth, his eyes squeezed shut in an effort not to come right then and there. Tony pushed in more, and Bruce continued to beg, "More! All the way! Come on, more!" So Tony complied, and both men bellowed when Tony sank in to the hilt.

Bruce began rocking impatiently, and so Tony pulled back until just his head was in before slowly easing back in all the way. Bruce whined with the slow back and forth that lasted for three more strokes before Tony couldn't take it any more. He pulled out to the head and then slammed back in with a resounding smack against Bruce's ass. The doctor shouted obscenities and dug his heels into Tony's shoulders, and so Tony did it again, and again, each time eliciting a more desperate sound from Bruce and a more feral growl from himself.

This was clearly Bruce's first time in a very long time, as he was very tight and extremely sensitive. He could feel every millimeter of Tony's cock inside him as it filled him, emptied him, and filled him again with every thrust. The tight heat that surrounded Tony's cock was beginning to clench around him, and he could feel a similar tension building deep in his own groin. Abandoning all thoughts of rhythm and care, he began violently pounding into Bruce, reddening his ass with the sharp contact from every slap of skin on skin. A growl started to rise from his throat as he pounded again and again, the tension in his groin rising with it, and he bellowed when he finally felt himself climax, pressing as far as he could go inside of Bruce, his face red from the exertion.

When Bruce heard Tony begin growling with the rise of his release, Bruce immediately gripped his own cock and began pumping desperately, feeling the static building at the base of his spine. He heard Tony's bellow just before he felt the cock inside of him pulsing, and it was just enough to send him over the edge. He screamed hoarsely and desperately as his own release spilled onto his stomach and even as far as his chest, but he hardly noticed as it had sent him temporarily out of his own head. Tony watched breathlessly, still panting from his own climax, as Bruce's features twisted into a fierce expression, turning his face almost completely green. But it was only for a moment, as he soon whimpered into breathless pants, his hand still loosely wrapped around his softened cock.

Tony pulled out carefully and lazily tossed the condom into a trash can beside the closest desk as he collapsed onto his back. Tony Stark saw a lot of women (and the occasional man) in his various beds all throughout the Tower, but he had never had such a mind-blowing experience as the one he just had.

"Six years," Bruce mumbled from the foot of the bed; he hadn't moved since they'd finished about five minutes before.

Tony whistled and shook his head as he rolled onto his side and said, "I will personally see to it that you will not go more than six hours from this point forward." Tony jammed his finger into the mattress, adding emphasis to his declaration.

"Even if I want women?" Bruce asked, propping himself up off his back with his elbows.

"Especially if you want women." Bruce laughed and made to sit up, but groaned and fell flat on his back. "Watch yourself, Angry," Tony cautioned, sitting up with a great deal of effort.

"Stop calling me Angry."

"Would you prefer Horny?"

Bruce sighed and said, "Angry it is."


	2. Control

"Hey Tony, I think I found the code that will fix the honing issue!" Bruce called out, typing lines of code into the test program for Tony's new suit.

"Really? That's nice, but I'm more interested in breaking the code that gets you to fuck me," Tony replied casually as he approached the platform, fresh from his shower.

Bruce sighed and turned around to have the same argument they'd already had several times, but stammered when he found Tony completely naked and smelling like Bruce's Old Spice. He had to admit, it was a welcome change from the Axe. "Tony, we… we can't do that. _I_ can't do that, I've already told you."

"See, you keep saying that," Tony bounced up the steps to the platform, "but I don't think you mean it. _Mm!"_ He'd wrapped his hand around himself and begun stroking slowly, gently. Bruce started talking to block out the sounds coming from Tony's hand and throat.

"If I have too much control, I lose it. You know how dangerous it is when you're topping," Bruce explained for the millionth time, sounding tired as he dragged his hand across his face. He turned his back to Tony and tried to focus on the code he'd just come up with.

"I've already told you," Tony murmured into his ear, startling Bruce by pressing himself up against his back, "I'm a big fan of how you lose control and turn into a big green rage monster. A _huge _fan," Tony emphasized his point with a firm thrust against Bruce's ass.

Bruce failed to swallow a grunt, but he took a deep breath and shook his head. He didn't trust his voice at the moment, as the skin underneath his fingernails was beginning to turn green.

"Suit yourself, Captain Abstinence," Tony said, and surprised Bruce by withdrawing. Bruce heard Tony lean back in one of his overpriced chairs that would lean completely horizontal sooner than it would tip over. Bruce continued working, decidedly not saying a word to Tony until he was sure his fingertips were a natural color again. Before that happened, however, he heard a gasp and then a sigh behind him. Bruce cleared his throat but continued flipping through screens and proofreading his coding. Eventually, a purring sound began rumbling from behind Bruce, and he finally said, "Making a bunch of noise isn't going to change my mind, Tony."

"I'm not just… _mmm_… making noise," Tony replied, his voice heavy with arousal.

"Either way, it's not going to—" Bruce began as he turned around, but stopped mid-sentence when he saw what Tony was doing. The man had his legs hanging off the armrests of the chair and two of his fingers inside himself, sliding in and out at what Bruce was sure was a torturously slow pace.

Tony's eyes had been closed until Bruce stopped talking abruptly; now he was staring lustfully up at Bruce, his eyelids heavy and his pupils blown with arousal. It was only half-acting, Bruce could tell, and he could feel his fingertips burning again.

"Bruce," Tony mumbled pleadingly, "I am not a man who has much left to need that he doesn't already have. But I need you to fuck me, right _now_."

"Tony, I can't—"

"Look at yourself! You need it too," Tony slowly withdrew his fingers and used his other hand to gesture at the erection pushing through Bruce's pants.

"I'm not denying that, Tony," Bruce rubbed the lines that had formed on his forehead, "but I can't. The Other Guy—"

"Fuck the Other Guy!" Tony shouted, then backtracked. "No, scratch that. Fuck _me_." Before Bruce could argue, Tony had clumsily stood up and pressed his body flush against the doctor's, eliciting a needy grunt from both men.

The doctor opened his mouth to argue, but Tony captured it with his own and they started fighting for oral dominance. Bruce won, and started tongue-fucking Tony's mouth in earnest, causing the taller man to whimper (a rare sound from the typically dominant genius). Bruce wanted desperately to comply with Tony's demands, but he couldn't. The last time he'd fucked somebody, he'd gone mad with the control and the Other Guy ravaged the entire street. He'd woken up to a flattened suburban street and was chased out when he tried to help clean up. Four people had been killed in the wreckage, including the girl he'd been with, and seventeen severely wounded.

Before he knew it, he'd toppled onto the lab bed on top of Tony. His shirt was on the floor between the platform and the bed, and he'd torn his pants and briefs off before falling on top of Tony. He attacked Tony's neck, nipping at pre-existing hickeys and sucking new ones to the surface. Tony was writhing beneath him, hands scrabbling at his lover's back, leaving scratch marks that dragged from his shoulder blades to his hips, where there were already finger-shaped bruises from the night before.

Bruce was dizzy with arousal and the adrenaline from being on top of Tony. The genius was pulling Bruce's hips down and grinding up against them, but the doctor had something else in mind. He grabbed Tony's hands and pinned them above his head on the bed, and started rutting desperately, their hard-ons rubbing and pressing into each other.

"That's it, yeah, come on, yes, _shit_ yes, _fuck!"_ Tony babbled encouragement from beneath Bruce, egging him on to go harder and faster. He would say anything, even start speaking Japanese, if it kept Bruce on top of him, dominating him like that. This was the first time Bruce had ever been this dominant, and Tony wanted it to last. The doctor repositioned himself so that he was between Tony's legs, and Tony wrapped his legs around Bruce, digging his heels into his lower back.

Bruce suddenly remembered he was going to need lube (they'd long-since forgone the use of condoms), but when Tony realized why he'd suddenly stopped, the genius seized the doctor's face and pulled it down for a needy kiss.

"Fuck the lube," Tony mumbled against Bruce's lips; he always sounded drunk when he was horny, and something about it was incredibly endearing.

"But—" Bruce began, but Tony shushed him and took one of his hands into his mouth, sucking on each individual finger and coating them with moisture before releasing it back to a wide-eyed Bruce. The doctor planted a surprisingly gentle kiss on Tony's lips before beginning to tease Tony's hole.

"If you don't stick your fingers in there right this second, I'm gonna—_HNNG!_" Tony's threat was lost in a growl when Bruce complied with his demands, and he toyed with Tony, pretending to have difficulty finding his prostate until he had two fingers in to the knuckle. "Yes, fuck, Bruce, fuck me, _God!"_

Bruce slowly withdrew his fingers and met Tony's gaze. In the absence of Bruce's fingers, Tony started stroking himself, making quiet needy sounds, but maintaining eye contact with his suddenly hesitant lover.

"I will try this for you, Tony," Bruce began slowly, "but you have to watch my face. The second you see it, you call it. That is extremely important, do you understand?"

Tony groaned and squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before replying, "I will, I swear, I promise. Just, _unf,_ fuck me already!"

Bruce didn't hesitate a second longer before he lined himself up and pressed in all the way, showing no mercy like he knew Tony wanted it. Tony's eyes were wide and fixed on Bruce's the entire time, and he arched his back and wailed at the indescribable fullness from finally having Bruce inside of him. The doctor himself had to catch his breath from how good and tight Tony felt, accepting him without a hitch; not a single protesting clench from the point of entry to fullness.

"Shit," Tony panted, "fuck! Bruce, move, fucking move!"

Bruce nodded and slowly drew back, awe-struck at the way he looked sliding inside of Tony. Both men stared with hanging jaws as Bruce's cock slowly disappeared inside of Tony with a torturously dirty sound. Bruce bit his lip and repeated the motion; he'd forgotten how it felt to be inside of someone, with the slick, warm muscles gripping his aching cock, and how the slightest movement made his nerves scream in agonizing delight.

Bruce tore his gaze from where his cock slid in and nearly-out of Tony to look at his lover's face. His eyes were closed and his mouth hung open in the image of bliss. Bruce's cock and the heat in his groin were begging for a violent pounding, so he gulped and hoarsely murmured Tony's name. When Tony's eyes flicked open and made contact with the doctor's, Bruce's cock twitched and Tony gasped. Bruce swallowed again and said, "Tony, watch my face. You can't look away from it, even for a second."

Tony nodded, and fixed his gaze determinedly on Bruce's face as he pulled out again and slammed his hips against Tony's ass. Tony moaned, so Bruce did it again, grunting in concert with Tony's moan and the loud smack of skin. He picked up the pace, slamming mercilessly into Tony, grunting louder with each successive thrust. Tony was moaning loudly now, and when he heard a sound come from Bruce's throat that sounded like a hybrid whimper-grunt, he seized his cock and started pumping desperately, panting but keeping a close watch on Bruce's face.

As Bruce started pounding with reckless abandon, his features distorted unpleasantly and his skin started flushing green. As the color flooded the doctor's cheeks, it took every ounce of strength Tony had to gasp, "B-Bruce! Green!"

Bruce thrusted reflexively four more times before he could stutter to a halt, and he withdrew from Tony in a panic. He rolled over, face down into the mattress, his swollen green hands clutching the sheets in a vice-like grip. Tony clumsily sat up, wincing at the soreness and emptiness he felt simultaneously, and knelt beside Bruce, unsure whether or not to touch him.

Bruce's fists were swelling steadily, and the curls on his head were going limp in a sweaty mess. He was panting heavily and growling, which shouldn't have been a turn-on, but it sent a shot of pleasure straight down Tony's spine.

"Bruce…" Tony didn't know what to say, but he felt that he had to say something. He was answered with an alarming snarl, but Bruce was still Bruce-sized, except for his fists and neck. For a split second, Tony wondered if Bruce's cock had grown too, but shook his head to clear his thoughts. Fuck, he was too horny to deal with this. He needed to think clearly.

"Suit," Bruce's voice was beginning to change too. He was struggling to think or feel anything aside from blind rage, but he had to warn Tony. He could feel it building, the splintering pain in his spine and head… he knew it was coming.

Tony wanted to console Bruce, to calm him down, but he didn't want Bruce to become frustrated if Tony didn't obey his command. He scrambled off the bed clumsily, still drunkenly horny, and realized the suit wasn't going to fit when he was this hard. He could deal with a semi-erection, but not the full-on personal record he was boasting now. He had to get rid of it before he could get in the suit.

"Suit!" Bruce insisted, burying his face into the mattress as his fingers tore into the fabric from his intense grip.

"W—" Tony choked on his dry throat and tried again, "Working on it. Have to, um…" he left his sentence unfinished as he sat back on the edge of the bed and began pumping his cock urgently, keeping a close watch on Bruce. His hair was damp on the back of his neck, and his growling was more desperate now. An occasional whimper came out between growls and grunts, evidence that Bruce was still fighting it. He was losing, but he was still fighting. A weak groan escaped from Tony's throat as his orgasm finally came, spilling onto his hand and stomach. He could question the morality of getting off on his friend's pain later; but right now, he had to suit up to protect himself.

He activated the sturdiest suit (it was no good for flying, but he wasn't going to need that function now) and stepped in. It felt odd with the cool metal on his bare skin; he'd only flown around the city like this once before, as an inside joke with himself.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, which was easier now that he'd released a good bit of distracting tension, he had Jarvis bring up the monitors for vital signs and turned them to Bruce. But Bruce was gone now, as Tony watched the man grow into a beast with a roar of pain. Tony noted that his erection had stayed intact through the transformation, growing with the rest of him, which was odd. He wondered if that had happened before.

He kept still, dimming the external lights of the suit as best he could, wondering if the Hulk would even see that he was there. As Tony watched, the monster didn't start a rampage as he'd expected; he seemed confused as to why he was there. Was it because Bruce hadn't necessarily been angry when he changed? The Hulk must simply be triggered by increased blood pressure and heart rate.

Now the monster was fisting the ground nervously, looking around in confusion. It looked down at itself, distracted by its erection, and immediately began stroking and pumping it furiously. It fell backwards on the bed and came almost immediately, or it seemed to; there wasn't any ejaculate. But as it lay there, stunned after its climax, it slowly began to whimper and shrink. Slowly but surely, Tony watched awe-struck as the Hulk grew paler and its muscles practically melted away until Dr. Banner was back in his human form, passed out on the bed and soaked in sweat.

Tony checked Bruce's vital signs and saw that, aside from the fact that he was unconscious, he was back to normal. He stepped out of the suit, and remembering that he was naked, grabbed his discarded jeans off the floor and threw them on before approaching Bruce. The doctor was slumped with the upper half of his body on the bed, and the lower half hanging off onto the floor.

Tony saw that the Hulk had, in fact, successfully gotten himself off, as there was cum on Bruce's cock, hand, and thigh. It seems that it was the human amount of ejaculate, despite the fact that he had been in Hulk form. Tony noted that for investigation at another time and gently slid Bruce up all the way onto the bed.

"Jarvis, some cold water and a couple towels, please," Tony said, double-checking Bruce's pulse. When Jarvis slid a wheeled counter beside the bed with a wide basin filled with cold water, Tony took the towels in the cabinet and dipped one in the cold water before gently dabbing at Bruce's forehead, face, and neck. He used a small washcloth to wipe the cum off of his hand and thigh, but avoided touching his cock for the moment.

About half an hour later, after Tony had another shower, he sat back down on the bed beside Bruce and began impatiently drumming his hands on his thighs. The sound caused Bruce to stir, and Tony stopped and watched closely while the doctor slowly came to.

"Shit," he mumbled, eyes still closed. Rubbing them and sitting up slowly, he muttered, "Damnit. Tony!"

"Right here, buddy," Tony answered calmly, resting a hand on Bruce's thigh.

Bruce blinked at him in disbelief, and then looked around the room, trying and failing to get out of bed. Falling back on the pillows propped behind him, Bruce said, "But I… he came out…"

Tony flashed a charismatic grin at him and said, "And he destroyed absolutely nothing, except for an admirably persistent boner."

Bruce blinked again, and looked down at himself, as if he'd forgotten what a penis looked like. Looking back up at Tony, he asked, "What?"

"You, uh, still had a healthy erection after the transformation," Tony explained, staring curiously at Bruce's penis, "And he took care of it, then you passed out. Anti-climactic, really, with all your talk of death and destruction. I was disappointed." Bruce's jaw hung open, and he shook his head in disbelief. "I want my money back. In fact, I demand a refund!" Tony declared with an indignant finger in the air.

"Tony, be serious," Bruce warned sternly, slowly standing and getting out of bed. He found a set of fresh clothes for him at the foot of the bed, and he began putting them on.

"I am being serious! Completely serious!" Tony raised his right hand solemnly, though his tone was all kidding.

"What did he do?" Bruce demanded, donning the T-shirt Tony had supplied; he adamantly refused to allow Bruce to wear button-down shirts anymore, because they took too long to remove.

"He was confused and horny, so he jerked it and passed out, then you turned back."

"You're kidding," Bruce insisted, his hands folded across his chest now.

"And you're deliriously repeating yourself. I am not kidding."

Bruce breathed out a long sigh of relief, and ran his hand through his dark curls. "Are you satisfied now? You were lucky this time, but it's usually a lot more dangerous. Will you stop bugging me about topping now?"

"For now," Tony said, but with a wink as he left the bed and walked towards the central platform.

"Tony…"

"You said you fixed the honing issue. How? Show me."


	3. In the Lab

"Hey Angry, you home or what?"

"I'm in the lab," Bruce said over the intercom.

"Ooh, kinky lab sex, I like it," Tony commented as he strode across the room towards the elevator.

"I'm working, Tony," Bruce said firmly, but not sternly.

"Mhm, real convincing argument. Funny story: You used that one last night. And if I recall correctly, it didn't work." The elevator doors shut and the elevator began to move up to the next floor, which was Dr. Banner's workspace.

Each of the Avengers had been given two floors of their own in Stark Tower: one was an apartment level for personal use, and the other floor was more professional and served as workspace with characteristics that varied depending on the needs of its occupant. Agent Barton's professional space, for example, was part R&D for developing new arrowheads, and part archery practice space. Each professional space had public access from other occupants of the Tower, whereas the private spaces required an additional access code.

Tony and Bruce, after about two months of sleeping together, had swapped access codes to each others' private spaces. However, despite Tony's insatiable sexual appetite, they met most often in their laboratories to collaborate on each other's research or various errands for Director Fury.

The elevator doors opened, and Tony stepped out, whistling ACDC's "Shook Me All Night Long" as he sought out Bruce. The doctor had been given a fully-equipped, Starktech-savvy laboratory for his experiments.

"As you just pointed out, because I didn't get any work done last night, I need to get it done now," Dr. Banner explained, patient as always.

Tony weaved around lab benches and refrigerators of varying temperatures until he finally reached the back of the lab, where Dr. Banner had the sleeves of a yellow button-down shirt rolled up to his elbows. He was bent closely over the spear Loki had used several weeks ago in his attempted take-over.

_'Damn,'_ Tony thought to himself upon seeing Bruce; button-downs were the doctor's code for 'no sex,' because Tony didn't have the patience for buttons, and it made Bruce angry when Tony tore the shirt or popped the buttons out. They'd learned that irritating Bruce prior to sex was a dangerous idea. One of very few dangerous things that Tony took seriously.

"I assumed we'd chucked that after the whole..." Tony finished his sentence by mimicking a fist fight and explosion.

Bruce shook his head, and without looking up from the spear, said, "Fury thought that we might as well check it out, in the event something useful could come of it."

"I'm surprised Fury trusts you with it," Tony replied, approaching the table upon which the spear rested.

"He trusts me with it as long as you're not around," Bruce said, leaning back from the table and fixing his eyes on Tony's to make his point clear.

"What? Why can't I watch? I love when you talk science to me," Tony mock-mewed at Bruce, but the doctor didn't laugh.

"Fury knows you're a distraction, and that you like poking me until I turn green," Bruce explained, looking over his glasses at Tony.

"Woah, Dr. Innuendo, was that intentional? Wait, what does Fury know about," he gestured at the space between himself and Bruce, "this?"

Bruce raised his eyebrows at Tony, and then rolled his eyes. "Kind of hard not to pick up on it when you're constantly harrassing me."

"But I harrass everybody," Tony blinked, genuinely surprised that Fury was aware of their sexual relationship.

"Yeah, but you don't mean it with everybody," Bruce replied with one last glance at Tony before returning to his work.

"Yeah, but..." The genius was stunned for a moment, but then asked suddenly, "Wait, does that mean EVERYBODY knows?"

"Um, yeah, they've all known for a while now."

"All? You just said 'all.' Even Captain Nostalgia?"

Bruce sighed. "Yes, Tony, even Steve knows. And he's not an idiot, you know, he-"

But Tony's outburst overrode Bruce's attempt at reason. "Great! So the 70-year-old Virgin knows, and I didn't know that everybody knows?" Bruce didn't reply, and just laughed quietly before turning back to his work.

"Bruce..." Tony rarely used the doctor's actual name, unless he wanted something. It was as close to saying "please" as the genius ever got.

"No, Tony."

"Come on, just real quick?"

"I said no."

Tony groaned and slouched in a pouty stance. "Look, Angry, I've been horny since I woke up this morning. Throw me a bone here." A pause, then he added, "And I do mean that literally." Bruce only shook his head, and so Tony responded by adjusting himself slightly and standing directly behind Dr. Banner.

Bruce cleared his throat and said, "Tony, please..."

"Please what?" Tony murmured against Bruce's ear, toying with the cartilage between his lips. Bruce opened his mouth to speak, just as Tony pressed his hips against the doctor's ass. Bruce grunted, and Tony's lips spread into a grin against Dr. Banner's neck.

"This isn't my room, Tony; anyone could just-" Bruce protested, trying to squirm out of the genius's firm grip. His lips were getting dangerously close to the doctor's weak point, and Bruce was running out of time to escape before Tony got to it.

"Then we'll make this quick, and you can get back to work," Tony breathed against Bruce's neck, his mouth hovering over the notch of bone between the doctor's neck and spine. Then, without warning, Tony bit down on the small, rounded bone and began sucking on it.

And just like that, all systems were down, and Bruce's libido was lit up like Times Square. "Mmm, fine, but the shirt stays."

Tony groaned in annoyance, but didn't argue. If the shirt stayed, that meant it really was going to be a quick and dirty fuck. Too much teasing and foreplay baited The Other Guy and caused Bruce's torso to swell slightly as the monster's interest was awakened. If the shirt stayed, prolonged teasing wasn't allowed.

Tony reached around Bruce and unbuttoned his pants, yanking them down unceremoniously to Bruce's knees. He squeezed Bruce's cock and ass through the shorter man's briefs before pulling them down too. He kneaded Bruce's ass cheeks greedily, biting down hard on the nape of the doctor's neck until Bruce started sweating and whining.

"Tony..." Bruce half-demanded, half-begged through gritted teeth, trying to control The Other Guy.

The genius got the message and quickly undid and pulled down his own pants and boxers before slicking up his cock with his pre-cum and lining up with Bruce's entrance. He gently teased the needy pucker with the head before pushing a single finger in as far as it could go, pulling it back and then doing it again. Bruce was already leaning forward on the countertop in front of him, taking measured breaths that were occasionally interrupted by a whimper.

After thrusting a third finger in just once, Tony removed his hand and pushed his cock in balls deep. He groaned shamelessly, and Bruce grunted and white-knuckled the edge of the counter. The genius didn't want for Bruce to acclimate and just began fucking him desperately, as if they hadn't had sex in years. Their moans and grunts were feral and obscene, jumping from their throats with every thrust.

It was shamelessly dirty, one man fucking the other into the counter, both half-dressed and snarling at every wet smack of skin against skin. Bruce turned his head to ease a cramp in his neck, and happened to catch an accidental glimpse at his and Tony's reflection in one of the blank glass screens at a nearby counter.

One of Tony's hands was digging deep wrinkles into Bruce's sweat-dampened shirt, while the other was jerking his cock at the absolute perfect pace. The taller man's jeans were around his ankles as his hips pistoned wildly, making the doctor's ass tremble with each hit. Watching the desperate fuck in their reflection caused a violent twist deep inside Bruce's groin.

"Oh, Tony, _fuck!_ Faster! _Faster, fuck!_ FUCK!" Bruce roared as he came, his cum splattering the side of the counter and over Tony's hand that pumped him through it.

As he came down from his climax, Bruce could practically taste Tony's desperation to come. Both his hands were digging into Bruce's hips painfully now, and he was alternating between whimpers and grunts: grunts as he got close, and whimpers as it faded back.

"Come on," Bruce egged him on, his voice still deep with arousal, "Fuck me, Tony. Come on! You're so close, I can- HNG!" Bruce grunted and Tony growled with a particularly violent series of thrusts, "I can _feel_ it, Tony. Come on, fuck me. Fuck me harder! Harder, Tony! _Harder!"_ Bruce was breathless again as he could feel Tony's desperation and hear his grunts as he got closer and closer until finally, Tony fell off the edge.

"FUCK!" Tony growled into Bruce's shoulder, biting down hard into it, completely disregarding the shirt. Tony's orgasm filled Bruce with hot cum, spurting steadily through Tony's growls and thrusts until he finally fell forward onto Bruce's back, his head hanging over the doctor's shoulder.

After cleaning up the soiled countertop, each scientist got a shower: Bruce in his personal bathroom, and Tony in the spare in the back of the lab. By the time Bruce got back to his lab space, Tony had already left. He wasn't alone, though; Director Fury was standing by Loki's scepter, patiently waiting for Bruce to return.

The scepter was not as Bruce had left it, however; it was standing upright, propped against the counter with a pair of blue-and-black camoflauge boxers hanging by the waistband from the top of the golden weapon. Bruce groaned inwardly and opened his mouth to explain and apologize, but Fury held up a hand to stop him.

"I don't want to know," he said in his usual stoic manner, "And as long as it doesn't interfere with your research, I don't care. Just tell Mr. Stark it is not a good idea to mock me." Fury lowered his chin sternly and raised his eyebrows at Bruce, his one eye piercing into both of Bruce's. The doctor nodded, and Fury continued, "Now, get this nonsense out of my sight and tell me what you've got on this thing."


	4. Indecent

"Why are you looking at me like that, Tony?" Bruce asked, raising his eyebrows at his boyfriend over his salad. The genius/billionaire/playboy/philanthropist was still waiting for his barbeque bacon cheeseburger to come out, and for the past two minutes he'd been staring at Bruce with an odd expression on his face.

"Like what? Can't a guy just gaze lustfully at his lover if he so chooses?" One side of Tony's mouth twitched upwards, and he started making obvious faces at Bruce: the single raised eyebrow and pursed lips, blowing smug kisses across the table, trying to make Bruce laugh. When he made a "mrow" sound, Bruce choked on the cucumber he hadn't had the chance to chew properly.

Bruce swallowed his laughter and tried to be serious, saying, "Knock it off, Tony. We're in public," and tilted his head towards the rest of the restaurant, indicating the other people sitting at tables nearby. Most of them weren't paying the two men much mind, but a few heads turned every so often when their fellow diners whispered in their ear that Tony Stark was sitting in the back corner of the diner.

"So what? Am I making you nervous, Dr. Banner?" Tony lowered his voice and nudged Bruce's left foot with his right. Bruce kicked the foot away, but after a moment it came back, shoeless, and started dragging up his leg.

"Tony," Bruce warned, stabbing a tomato with a loud CLINK against the plate and glaring at his partner.

"Bruce," Tony mimicked, reaching across the table and covering the doctor's hand with his own. He started tracing the other man's hand, gently outlining each individual finger in a way that raised the dark hair on Dr. Banner's arms (and legs too, but luckily he was wearing pants so nobody would see). Bruce withdrew his hand from the tabletop and rested it on his lap where Tony couldn't reach. "Aw, come on, you're no fun!"

"I said we're in public, Tony. Not now," the vegetarian warned again. He was going to make Tony pay for this ridiculous behavior later.

The billionaire slid around in their booth so that he was seated right up against the doctor, who ignored him and kept eating. Just as Tony's hand rested on Bruce's warm thigh, his burger was placed in front of him on the table.

"Is there anything I can get you or your companion, Mr. Stark?" The waitress asked, glancing at Bruce but focusing mostly on Tony. She adjusted her uniform top in a subtle movement that not-so-subtly revealed quite a lot of her cleavage.

Bruce pinched Tony's wrist when he didn't reply right away, clearly mesmerized by the waitress's breasts. One more button and they'd be able to see her bra, which was undoubtedly a push-up. Bruce was used to women randomly propositioning Tony, and didn't mind it. Despite Tony's bisexuality, Bruce knew where the billionaire's preferences were.

Tony looked around, feigning concern about being overheard, and leaned over the table. "Is that a proposition," he glanced at her name tag, "Natalie?"

"Only if you want it to be, Mr. Stark," the busty young woman replied. Tony grinned; if she had been offended and said no, he could have easily passed it off as a joke, and the waitress would simply chalk it up to Tony being Tony. God, he loved being rich and famous.

"When's your shift over, sweetheart?" He asked, glancing at his watch. It was 5:15.

"Nine o'clock," she replied with a Cheshire grin.

"9:30 then, Ms. Natalie," Tony winked, and as the waitress leaned over to take Tony's empty glass of water, the billionaire added, "You know were to find me."

"I'll be back shortly with your water, Mr. Stark," the waitress replied before turning and walking back towards the kitchen.

"I will never understand your lack of interest in women, Doctor," Tony murmured, clearing his throat before taking a large bite out of his burger. It wasn't a complete disinterest, however, Tony knew; Bruce enjoyed watching Tony when he was with a woman. The way he handled them and the way they responded really got to the voyeur kink buried deep inside of him.

"It keeps you pacified so I can get work done, so I can't complain," Bruce remarked, pushing a piece of lettuce through a puddle of salad dressing on his plate before eating it.

"If by 'work,' you mean 'jerk off while watching,' then yes, that is an accurate assessment of the situation," Tony muttered, and Bruce elbowed him in the side, causing Tony to choke on the fry he'd just put in his mouth.

"Shh!" Bruce shushed Tony, even though he knew nobody was near enough to them to have heard. The waitress returned and gave Tony an eyeful as she leaned over the table to give him his newly filled glass of water. He thanked her, but quickly refocused his attention on Bruce.

"Am I making you uncomfortable again, Angry?" Tony asked, raising an eyebrow at Bruce. The doctor offered no reply, and instead continued eating his salad, keeping his eyes glued to the plate in front of him. Tony rested his free hand on Bruce's thigh again, and began sliding it forward and back, his fingers brushing the inside of the doctor's thigh and his wrists backing up to Bruce's hipbones.

"Tony…" Bruce murmured warningly, but Tony had already succeded in getting Bruce's body temperature to rise.

"I'm not stopping until you kiss me," Tony said quietly, with a gentle squeeze as he continued stroking the doctor's thigh.

"I'm not falling for that again," Bruce warned the billionaire, recalling the last time he'd said that. They were working on an assignment from Director Fury, sitting side-by-side at computers when Tony had started up the same routine. When Bruce finally kissed him to stop the teasing, Tony had fucked Bruce's mouth with his tongue to the point where Bruce was making embarrassing noises. As it turned out, Director Fury had been on the other side of a video chat with Tony, and Bruce hadn't realized it. Later that night, Bruce had pounded the everloving shit out of Tony as revenge. The more they fucked, the more control Bruce got over the Other Guy, and with more control came more possibilities in the bedroom. It was exhilirating.

"Oh, you're not?" Tony asked, bringing Bruce back to the present, staring down at the doctor's crotch. He was half-hard between Tony's stroking and the memory he'd just relived.

"Shut up," Bruce muttered, stabbing the last cherry tomato too enthusiastically, causing it to shoot off his plate and onto the floor under the table. He ducked under the table to retrieve it, lest he or Tony step on it, and Tony took that opportunity to adjust himself. Bruce hadn't realized Tony was getting hard too. As he came out from under the table, Bruce hit his head on the way.

"Ow! Fuck!" He grumbled, rubbing the top of his head.

"Yes, please," Tony replied, moving his hand suddenly to squeeze Bruce's dick through his jeans.

Bruce groaned and shoved Tony's hand away. "Tony, not now! We have to walk back through the diner to leave. I'm _not _doing that when I'm like this."

"No we don't," Tony replied, pointing to a back door just a few feet away from their corner booth. Bruce turned back to Tony to say something, but Tony grabbed the curls at the back of Bruce's head and pulled him in to a desperately hungry kiss.

Bruce pulled away, feeling lightheaded, and said, "Are you done?"

Tony looked down at his half-eaten burger and said, "Yeah. Let's get out of here before I fuck you right on the table."

Bruce swallowed a moan, and as Tony pulled out his wallet to leave their payment on the table, said, "What makes you think you're topping?"

"If it comes down to a fight," Tony began as they hurriedly slid out of the booth and headed towards the back exit, "I'm stronger, and I would win."

"Not with what you've been doing to me for the past half hour," Bruce argued, following Tony out the door.

"Fuck! Why did we walk instead of driving?" Tony threw his hands out to his sides in frustration when he remembered they didn't have a car to sneak away in.

"That was your idea," Bruce reminded him, and Tony glared at the doctor.

They began walking—slightly uncomfortably—down the street towards Stark Tower, which was only two blocks away, but Tony kept glancing sideways at the impressive protrusion in Bruce's pants, and it was driving him more and more mad with every step, with the way Bruce's thighs were moving on either side of it.

They passed by an abandoned storefront with a "For Rent" sign in the dusty window, and Tony had an idea. Grabbing Bruce's hand, he pulled him up to the door. It wasn't locked, and the windows were tinted with dirt to the point that you couldn't see inside.

"C'mere," Tony growled, opening the door and shoving Bruce inside ahead of him.

"Tony, this isn't—" Bruce began, but Tony interrupted, pulling Bruce's body flush against his.

"Shut up," he growled before squeezing the doctor's ass and kissing him roughly, almost painfully hard. Tony was trying to push Bruce forward, against the wall, but Bruce pushed back until they were no longer kissing, but shoving each other around. The doctor let a brief flare of the Other Guy appear for a second to get an advantage over Tony, and shoved him against a table. The abandoned space had apparently previously been a restaurant of sorts.

After hiding the Other Guy away, Bruce began hurriedly pulling down his pants and briefs. He took hold of his cock and began pumping it, working precum over the shaft, already breathing heavily.

"Tony…" Bruce panted, and Tony immediately pulled down his own pants and boxers. The billionaire made to turn and face the doctor, but Bruce roughly turned him back around and pushed him over the dirty tabletop. He kept one hand firmly on the back of Tony's neck, pinning him down to the table, and the other hand on his cock as he approached Tony's ass. There was no time for foreplay or preparation: he needed to fuck Tony _now_.

He lined himself up and pushed in all the way. Somebody shouted, "FUCK!" but neither was sure who said it. Tony tried to shift into a more comfortable position, but Bruce's grip on the back of his neck tightened, and he pushed Tony's face against the surface of the table.

With one hand steadying himself at Tony's waist, and the other pinning him to the table, Bruce didn't have a hand available to reach around and jerk Tony off, but he didn't care. He was feeling selfish this time. He didn't start slowly, and there was no teasing; he immediately began pounding into Tony's ass. There was also no lube or condom, just Bruce fucking Tony's tighter-than-usual ass, the doctor's hips slamming Tony's against the edge of the table painfully.

"Oh, Bruce, fuck!" Tony babbled, wincing in pain with the dry fucking as his hips and face rocked against the table. Bruce was filling him completely, stretching him to his limits and making him howl like an animal. He managed to unpin his arm from underneath himself and began jerking himself off.

Bruce could feel Tony's muscles clenching around his dick, desperate for release, and it was bringing himself closer to the edge too. With some of his usual restraint returning, he slowed down so he could speak.

"Nng… Tony, I'm getting close. Do you want me to pull out before—"

Tony made a growling noise and replied, "Damnit, Bruce… you were doing so—fuck!" Bruce had hit his prostate, "So well. Don't stop now."

"But I don't—" Bruce began, but Tony interrupted again.

"Shit, Banner, I love you, but what I need you to do right now is shut up and fuck me senseless!" Tony pushed back against Bruce, and what sounded like a whimper came out of the billionaire's mouth.

Bruce didn't need any more encouragement, so he stopped his slow, shallow tease and went back to pounding mercilessly into Tony's ass. Familiar static began building in the base of his spine until it rose like mercury in a thermometer and exploded in stars behind his eyes as he came hard inside of Tony. When the billionaire felt Bruce fill him with hot cum for the first time—no condom between them—he began whimpering with the need to come, and as Bruce pulled out gently, Tony practically mewed, an unfamiliar high-pitched whine rising from his throat as he came into his hand and onto the floor, panting with his sweaty forehead pressed against the tabletop. When he finished, he slumped against the table, and Bruce gently patted his thigh from where he'd collapsed onto his ass on the floor.

"I knew you had a mean streak in you," was the first thing Tony said when he'd returned to his senses less than five minutes later.

"Tony, I—"

Tony held up his hand to silence Bruce and said, "Don't apologize. You'll ruin it. But seriously, that was amazing. Truly. Do that more often."

Bruce blinked, looking slightly stunned. "You… you liked that? But, God, look what I did to you…" Bruce murmured, tentatively reaching towards the dark purple line that went across Tony's waist. There also was some dark color beginning to flush his right cheek from being pressed against the table there as well.

Tony shooed Bruce's hands away, but accepted the clothes that Bruce offered. He'd dressed while Tony was catching his breath, and so now he checked himself again to make sure he was decent to be in public again. Once Tony had dressed, Bruce put his hand on the billionaire's back and kissed him gently, still feeling the need to apologize for how rough he'd been.

It was a chaste kiss—a rare occurrence for Tony—and when he pulled away, said, "Stop apologizing. Now let's get back to designing that new suit."


	5. Putting on a Show

By the time 9:30 had arrived, Tony was chomping at the bit for his appointment with Natalie. It'd been several weeks since he'd had sex with a woman, and as much as he preferred sex with Bruce to anyone else, he could not ignore the fact that Bruce did not have breasts. Tony really likes breasts.

Speaking of Bruce, the doctor was waiting patiently in Tony's bedroom for the night's shenanigans to begin. Tony had set things up, as usual, to take place in his guest bedroom. Little did any of his guests know that there was a one-way window/mirror on the wall separating the two bedrooms, providing the perfect view for a voyeur in Tony's bedroom, without the guest's knowledge. Prior to becoming involved with Bruce, Tony had used it to candidly watch his guests wait for him and get ready while he himself did the same.

The billionaire had other arrangements as well, including a special invention of his: embedded inside the bedspread were tiny pieces of recognition software that could detect any kind of sexually-transmitted disease/infection as quickly as a pregnancy test could detect hormone changes indicative of pregnancy. All it needed was contact with some sort of genital fluid. Instead of a plus or minus sign, however, the sheets would turn pale blue if his guest was clean, and a dark purple if they were not. Tony Stark may be a man who lives on the edge, but he is NOT a man who wants crabs or the clap.

The buzzer rang just as Bruce had seated himself in front of the window into the guest room. He watched Tony check himself in the mirror before striding purposefully out of the room, and out of view into the rest of his living space.

As he walked by his bedroom, Tony knocked on the door and said, "It's showtime, Horny!" and Bruce laughed, stretching himself out in the expensive armchair he knew so well.

Tony verified it was Natalie at the door before opening it and inviting her in. "Hellooo, nurse!" He whistled as she walked in, barely remembering to close the door behind her. She'd changed out of her uniform, naturally, and was instead wearing a tight black V-neck that cut low enough to reveal the absence of a bra, and snug black jeans that hung low on her waist, below her rounded hips.

"I've been waiting all day for you," Natalie murmured as she wrapped her arms around Tony's neck and pulled him in for a deep kiss.

"Mmm, And I you, my dear," Tony replied, licking his lips. "Bedroom's right this way." He wrapped a strong arm around her waist and led her back to the guest bedroom, closing and locking the door behind him. Natalie detached herself from Tony's side when he gestured towards the bed, and sat on the edge expectantly. "Now, I have one request to ask of you, Ms. Natalie," Tony began, removing his shirt before continuing, "I want you to get yourself ready, right there, so I can watch."

Natalie grinned devilishly and said, "As long as you promise to help."

"Oh, I swear it. I just want to see what you like first," Tony winked, and Natalie began undressing. Tony leaned against the dresser filled with various sizes of women's clothing (so his guests could leave with some dignity), and watched his lover-for-the-moment closely.

Bruce looked on, licking his lips in anticipation, while Tony in his shirtless glory was clearly already becoming antsy for action. He adjusted himself in his jeans when Natalie bent over, topless now, to remove her heels. Tony's eyes widened at the sight of her C-cup breasts hanging as the woman was bent over, and he licked his lips as her jeans slid off to reveal a complete lack of underwear.

Completely naked now, Natalie spread her legs and leaned back against the pillows before starting to gently tease herself with two fingers, massaging her clit in circles. The circles became smaller and the movements quicker as Natalie began enjoying herself more, her nipples hardening and cheeks flushing.

She leaned back, withdrawing her hand to lean on her elbows, and beckoned Tony to join her on the bed. The hand that she had been teasing herself with was on the sheet now, and it was only a matter of time before Tony knew if he was cleared for take-off.

He approached her slowly, adjusting himself more than was necessary to add to his stalling, and when he reached the bed, he crawled over top of her and began kissing her again, palming his crotch as the kisses deepened and he swallowed small sounds coming from Natalie's throat.

Bruce watched intently, his erection slowly rising without his touch just yet. He loved the way Tony looked from that angle; the one-way mirror was set up so that Bruce had a side view of the bed, so at this point he was admiring the curve of Tony's back as it dipped down before rounding out into his ass. The waistband of Tony's boxer-briefs was visible, and Bruce unconcsciously touched his teeth together, imagining himself yanking those jeans down and pulling the boxer-briefs down with his teeth. He moaned involuntarily, and startled himself when he realized he'd began palming his crotch, mirroring the movement of Tony's hand.

Tony pulled away from Natalie, and glanced at where her hand had touched the bedspread. He chuckled to himself when he saw that it was blue, and Natalie looked confused. "Why are you laughing?"

"Oh, I just keep forgetting that I designed these sheets to change colors," Tony explained quickly, as he took of his jeans. Before he had a chance to step out of them, however, Natalie sat up and seized his dick through his underwear. "OhGod!" Tony gasped, not expecting the sudden, firm contact. Natalie began stroking him through the fabric, and stopped only to tug the underwear down and allow Tony to step out of the jeans and boxer-briefs at his ankles.

Tony climbed onto the bed, and before he could lean down to all fours over Natalie, she seized his cock again and started stroking as she slowly leaned closer to it until Tony could feel her breath against it, and then— "Oh! Fuck!" the words were out of his mouth before he could give a thought to restraining them. Natalie grinned around him, starting to suck and moan.

"Fuck, Natalie, that's…. God. I'm not going to last if— Oh! Bitey! Yes, fuck!" Tony shouted, interrupting himself when Natalie unexpectedly bit down on his dick. She pulled off of him and, leaning back, pulled him on top of her.

Bruce watched, his pants and briefs around his ankles now, pumping his cock and breathing heavily as he saw the coital bliss passing over Tony's face in waves. He hadn't tried biting with Tony yet, but now it was definitely added to the list. The look on his face when Natalie bit down and the slurred jibberish that flew from his mouth had nearly been enough to make Bruce come.

Now Tony had pulled a condom from a bedside table drawer, and was putting it on, kneeling over Natalie who was squirming in anticipation. Tony positioned himself between her legs, and slid himself into her warm, wet pussy. Tony, Natalie, and Bruce all groaned in unison as Tony pushed in as far as he could go.

He thrusted in and out with surprising restraint that he certainly did not have when he was pounding Bruce into next Tuesday. Tony's eyes were focused on Natalie's breasts as they trembled and shook every time his pelvis smacked into her, and bracing himself with his left arm, used his right to squeeze and massage her breasts.

Natalie chuckled, a low sound Tony could almost feel from being inside her, and asked, "You're not used to breasts, are you? With your boyfriend, you don't have any tits to squeeze." Tony managed a smile, and stopped thrusting to lean forward and suck on one of her nipples. Natalie purred and said, "Mmm, do you like my tits, Tony?"

"God yes," Tony mumbled, kissing and squeezing them, almost completely distracted from his thrusting.

"Do you want to see them bounce, Tony?" She arched her back, reminding Tony to keep thrusting.

"Nng! Yes, shit, yes!" Tony grunted in response, and suddenly Natalie pushed Tony backwards, and when he fell on his back, she climbed on top of him and held his dick while she beared down onto him.

Seeing Bruce getting shoved backwards and dominated unexpectedly made Bruce's pupils dilate and his stroking become quicker. The look on Tony's face when he fell back, and then when Natalie was bearing down on him as he slowly slid in to the hilt with her above him… it was making Bruce sweat and swear where he was stretched in the chair in front of the window.

Tony watched, mesmerized, as Natalie rocked her hips forward and back, creating a friction that was more for her than for him. After a few moments of gentle rocking, she bit her lip and leaned forward, so that she was kneeling straddled across Tony with her hands on his shoulders holding herself up.

"Fuck me, Tony," she murmured, letting her breasts hang inches from Tony's wide-eyed face. Tony apparently needed to be told twice, because he simply stared at the breasts shining with sweat over his face until Natalie repeated herself more urgently, "Tony, please, fuck me!"

The message had finally sunk in, so Tony grasped her hips firmly and began thrusting up in short bursts, making her breasts bounce and shudder with every hit. His balls smacked painfully up against her ass, but he didn't care because her tits were in his face, her moans were stuttered by his thrusts, and he was in paradise in that moment.

"Hnng! Shit, fuck, nng!" Tony grunted as his hips smacked repeatedly against Natalie's thighs, his dick sliding forward and back and forward and back inside her hot pussy. He heard her crying out, felt her slick muscles clenching around him, and she was coming hard.

"Oh! Oh, fuck! Aaah!" Natalie cried out, digging her nails into Tony's shoulders as she came with him inside of her. Tony was moaning urgently now too, his thighs burning with the effort of his rapid thrusting, and he could feel it rising, painfully slowly.

Bruce was thrusting desperately into his own fist, watching Tony coming so close to the edge. He could see it in the savage way Tony had increased the frequency of his thrusts and the tension in his face, and he could hear it in Tony's voice, as the grunting turned to moaning, and the moaning rose to shouting as he saw it happen: Tony's head titled back against the bed, his mouth wide open in an animalian roar as he came, and despite being in a different room without seeing Tony's cock clearly, Bruce could count the shots of cum as he watched Tony's face and body. One, two, three, four… Four! Bruce shouted as he came too, his cum spilling all over his stomach and hand.

By the time he had come down from his orgasmic high, Tony and Natalie were already halfway through re-dressing themselves. Tony was pointing to the guest bathroom and explaining that there were clothes in the large dresser if she wanted to change after her shower. He gave her a kiss and whispered something in her ear before gathering his clothes and leaving the room completely naked.

There was a single knock on the door before Tony stepped into his own bedroom and closed it behind him. Seeing Bruce cleaning himself up, Tony noted the amount of tissues required to clean up the mess and grinned deviously.

"Was that good for you?" Tony asked breathlessly, his face still flushed. His entire body was shining with sweat, and Bruce could practically spell the testosterone on him.

"Oh, hell yes," Bruce replied with a smile, watching Tony as he strode towards the adjoining bathroom for a shower. "You were just aching for a woman, weren't you?"

"Fuckin' A, man," Tony called out over the noise of the shower running, "You have no idea the difference that tits make."

Bruce's smile shrank a bit, but he knew what Tony meant. "I think I have a few ideas I wanna try out with you."

"I like it when you have ideas, Banner," Tony called back, "I look forward to finding out what you've got in that sex-crazed mind of yours."

"Mhm, yeah, _I'm_ the sex-crazed one," Bruce muttered to himself, and Tony either didn't hear him or pretended not to. Speaking louder now, Bruce stood up and said, "I'm gonna go clean up and try to figure out why your new repulsors don't fire."

"Don't blow anything up without me!"

Bruce smiled and said, "Once I think I've got them going, I'll leave pushing the big red button to you."

"You complete me!" Tony called out, just before Bruce closed the door behind him with a grin.


	6. Trust

"So can you work with this?" Agent Romanoff asked, looking over Dr. Banner's shoulder at the paperwork she had just brought him.

"Oh, definitely! This is fantastic. How did you-?" Dr. Banner turned to face Romanoff, but she folded her arms across her chest and shook her head.

"Trade secrets, Doctor. Couldn't tell you if I wanted to."

Bruce laughed and held out his hand towards the agent, saying, "Thank you so much, Agent Romanoff. The details in his notes are amazing. I'll be able to figure out what he's trying to make in no time."

"Thank me after you figure it out in time for SHIELD to stop him," the attractive agent replied with a smile, adding, "And it's just Natasha."

Bruce returned her smile as they shook hands and said, "Do you lack confidence in my abilities, Natasha?"

Releasing his hand, Natasha folded her arms again and replied, "Not at all, Doctor."

"Bruce," he chimed in quickly.

"Not at all, Bruce," she repeated with emphasis on his name, "I just hope we're not already too late."

She gave him a curt nod before turning and walking away towards the door of Dr. Banner's lab space. She had gotten halfway across the room when a thought occured to Bruce suddenly.

"Natasha!" She stopped walking and turned around, her rust-colored eyebrows raised expectantly. "I never got to thank you for, um," he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, reluctant to remember the incident but determined to thank Natasha, "For trying to help, when I was, uh, turning on the helicarrier-"

Natasha blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting the gratitude, but she replied quickly, sensing Bruce's discomfort, "Oh! No, it was nothing... I mean, it was just instinct, really."

Bruce's mouth turned up in a small smile, but it did not reach his eyes. "I mean it, though. Most people tend to just... you know, run off. The brave ones try to fight me right off the bat. Not many stick around to help."

Natasha started walking back towards Bruce saying, "Fighting without provocation and without attempts to reason is not brave; it's cowardly and unwise."

Bruce shrugged and said, "Whatever you call it, it's how people usually respond. But you didn't, and I appreciate that. Truly. Thank you."

It was Natasha's turn to shrug now as she responded with, "You don't have much to thank me for. It didn't work very well, if you recall."

Bruce laughed and said, "But it's the effort that I'm thanking you for. You can just say 'you're welcome,' you know. It's what people usually say."

Natasha allowed herself a small, genuine smile and said, "I'm not the kind of person who does the 'usual' things, but... You're welcome."

"Well, that makes two of us," Bruce remarked, wringing his hands unconsciously as he approached Natasha, and offered his hand again. "It's nice to meet someone who's different sometimes."

Maybe it was what he'd said, or how he'd said it, but suddenly Bruce found himself being pulled into an embrace. It was nice to have human contact with someone who wasn't doing it to get you in bed with them, like Tony. After a moment, Natasha started to pull away, and before he realized what he was doing, the doctor leaned forward and gently touched his lips to Natasha's forehead, then her cheek, and then her lips.

She returned the kiss, and for a very long minute it was chaste and polite, but not without feeling. Bruce had forgotten how soft a woman's lips were, and Natasha had forgotten how nice it felt to be lead instead of leading. With Clint, she was always the dominant one, because it was how he liked it. Not that she didn't enjoy it, but...

Bruce's hands slid down to her waist, slowly and patiently, not greedily, and rested there, simply holding her. Natasha slid her arms from Bruce's back to his chest, up his neck, and cradled his face as she deepened the kiss. Bruce pulled her waist against his, and she sighed into his mouth.

Bruce took each of the agent's hands in his and turned his face to plant a lingering kiss on her left and then right palm. Her eyelids fluttered shut for a moment, and he smiled.

"I'd ask how long it's been since you've been with a woman," Natasha murmured, planting firm kisses up Bruce's neck, "but I already know."

A small knot formed in Bruce's stomach at the memory from seven years ago when he'd destroyed a small suburban neighborhood and killed four people in the process. It had been the first time he'd had sex since his accident, and it wasn't until a year ago that anyone had dared try to have sex with him. In the ten months he and Tony had been sleeping together, he had learned to control the Other Guy in sexual situations so that not even his fingertips would tinge green anymore when he was aroused. It didn't take away any of the guilt from that first time, though...

"Then why do you trust me?" Bruce asked, inhaling sharply when Natasha's tongue grazed the sensitive skin on his neck.

"Because I know that's not who you are," Natasha replied, "and you have it under control now."

"What makes you say that?" Bruce asked, wondering how she could possibly know.

"Your fingers aren't green," she kissed each of his fingertips as she spoke.

"How do you-"

"Trade secrets, Bruce," she murmured, running a hand through his hair before pulling him into a hungry kiss.

A few minutes later, they were downstairs in Bruce's apartment level of Stark Tower. There was a trail of clothing leading up to Bruce's bed, where he was kneeling between Natasha's legs. He'd put the condom on clumsily, his hands becoming dysfunctional from nerves, and watched breathlessly as he slid into Natasha slowly and effortlessly.

She took him in with a gasp, and when he started moving his hips, she began to purr. Bruce leaned down to kiss Natasha's lips, forehead, and cheeks. He kissed her jawline down to her neck, and moved farther down to her breasts, massaging one while kissing the other. He slid his hands up her strong arms and cradled her face while pressing his lips gently against hers.

Natasha made a small needy whine, and Bruce bowed his head over her shoulder to focus and started thrusting. He started shallow and quick, which made Natasha bite her lip and squeeze Bruce's shoulders. He breathed heavily into the crook of her neck, moaning her name, and she responded breathlessly with his.

Soon, Bruce's thighs started to burn with the effort to make such quick thrusts, so he slowed down and groaned, feeling the warmth of Natasha's vagina surrounding him as his cock throbbed and moved inside of her. He raised his head to see Natasha's face and something in the fierceness of her eyes drove him to start thrusting deeper and quicker, and he could feel her muscles pulsing around him more than ever before.

She had been moaning quietly, but now she started whining and keening until he could feel her clenching down on him, and he saw it in her face. When her climax hit her, all the sounds in her throat stopped abruptly, and her face froze in a silent gasp, her eyes wide and flashing at Bruce as her body convulsed briefly before becoming still.

While she rode her intense orgasm, Bruce had forgotten how a woman's muscles felt when they hit their climax in a frenzy, and how good it felt around his achingly desperate cock. Just as she was coming down from it, Bruce rose into his own climax, half-grunting, half-whimpering as he felt the cum bursting out of him earnestly. Breathless, he pulled out from Natasha and rolled over, peeling off the condom and tossing it into the trash can beside the bed.

He rolled onto his side to face Natasha, and lightly touched his lips to her shoulder.

"Thanks for not taking the Tower down with us," Natasha murmured with a sideways glance at Bruce.

The doctor chuckled and rolled onto his back. After a moment he said, "Thanks for trusting me."


	7. The Better Man

Bruce heard the buzzer three times while he was in the shower, and while he was toweling off, his bedroom door opened and Tony walked in. The billionaire sniffed the air, and frowned.

"I'm in the bathroom, Tony, just gimme a sec," Bruce called out as he wrapped the towel around his waist. When he walked out of the bathroom and into his bedroom, Bruce found Tony laying down in the center of his bed, looking none too pleased.

"Tell me, Doctor," Tony folded his arms across his chest and raised a thoughtful finger to his chin, "Why does it smell like Agent Romanoff in here?"

"What?" Bruce narrowed his eyes and tilted his head at the strange question. He hadn't had the chance to change the sheets from earlier that afternoon; after Natasha had left following a short nap, he had gone straight into the shower to clean the musky scent of sex off his skin.

Tony broke eye contact with Bruce as he pointed to his right and said, "This side of the bed smells like you. And this side," he pointed to his left, "smells like Agent Romanoff. Tell me why that is." Tony's brown eyes had a spark of anger in them, which concerned Bruce.

"Uh, how can you identify Natasha by smell?" Bruce asked, and the spark flared in Tony's eyes.

"Oh! She's Natasha now?"

"As of this afternoon, yes. She had a mission earlier this morning to obtain some secret lab notes from that rogue Hydra scientist we've been keeping an eye on. She brought them over this afternoon so I could look at them to determine what sort of-"

Tony waved his hand impatiently and dismounted from the bed, striding slowly but purposefully towards Bruce. "Don't tell me what I already know. I was the one who found him, if you recall. No, what I want to know is how that brought her to a first-name basis in your bed."

"Does it matter?" Bruce asked, getting testy; he didn't like the tone that Tony was using with him.

"Uh, yeah," Tony replied with a heavy "duh" undertone, "Last I checked, your bed only ever smelled like you and me."

"Oh, as if your bed was ever so clean. You have women going in and out of your bedroom like it's a business. I didn't think it mattered if _one time_, I would have someone in mine."

"If it was a random woman, like whats-her-name, the waitress-"

"Natalie," Bruce said, folding his arms across his chest sternly.

"Whatever," Tony waved his hand like a fly was uzzing around his head, "I would congratulate you, and maybe propose a menage-a-trois for next time. But no, this is different."

"Why? How is this any different?" Bruce demanded, shifting his stance.

"Because it's Agent Romanoff," Tony replied, as if it was obvious, "I've wanted to fuck her since... I don't even know anymore. That's a piece I've been chasing for two, three years now."

Bruce ducked his head down with a bitter grin and then threw his head back with a short, cold laugh. "Oh! Oh, I see. This isn't okay, because _you_ wanted her. You're jealous because I slept with her and you didn't."

"Frankly, it doesn't make the slightest bit of sense," Tony wasn't hiding his anger now, "because I'm the ladies man. You're the- the..." The genius faltered, unsure what word he wanted to use.

"You think I seduced Natasha and fucked her like it was some kind of achievement? So I could add the conquest to the list, like a trophy on a shelf? You don't get it, Tony. I didn't fuck her."

"You didn't?" Tony looked confused now.

"I _made love_ to her, Tony. There's a difference, and I don't think you see it."

"Oh, please," Tony rolled his eyes, "You're just afraid to properly fuck a woman because the Other Guy will come out and smash everything to pieces."

"No, I'm not afraid to fuck a woman. I just have a lot more respect for them than you do, because unlike you, my heart isn't just a piece of metal. Natasha didn't need someone to fuck, and neither did I. We needed someone to love us, and hold us, because nobody ever wants to. Because they're afraid of us. I'm not an animal, Tony. You know I've learned to control the Other Guy, keep him from coming out. In fact, between the two of us, _you're_ the animal, not me."

"Oh, this is great. You're the one fucking-Oh, I'm sorry, _making love to_-" Tony corrected himself, mocking Bruce, and the doctor shoved him and went to walk past him. "Woah! That was uncalled for!"

"You attacking me for something I had every right to do is uncalled for. Now get out, you're making me angry." Bruce opened the door, but Tony walked over and slammed it shut.

"Alright, fine. If you're not afraid to fuck someone properly, prove it." Tony tore off his shirt and spread his arms in invitation.

"No, Tony, just get-"

"NO, Bruce. Come on. Prove it. Prove that you're a better man than I am," Tony insisted, dropping his pants and kicking them to the side. Bruce was still shaking his head, staring down at the floor, and Tony stepped forward and shoved Bruce roughly. "Show me what a better man you are."

"Tony, stop it," Bruce stiffened, but did not reciprocate Tony's shove. Tony frowned and snatched at Bruce's towel, trying to pull it off. "Tony! Knock it off!" Bruce tried pushing Tony's hands away, but he persisted at grabbing at the towel until he finally pulled it off, and Bruce finally broke and shoved Tony away, causing him to stumble backwards and hit his head against the wall.

"Show me how much better you are," Tony snarled as Bruce turned him around, pushing his face against the wall. The doctor yanked down Tony's boxers and began pumping his cock furiously against the billionaire's ass. "Come on, Bruce. Prove it."

"Shut up!" Bruce growled, wrenching Tony's head to face forward, pressing the other man's forehead painfully against the wall as he spread Tony's cheeks apart and pressed all the way in. Tony howled in pain, and Bruce pounded him into the wall. Tony's erection was continually being pinned and pushed against the wall with each thrust, but he kept repeating something, almost like a chant, half-intelligibly.

"Not enough," Tony panted against the wall, "not enough. Prove it! Fuck, not enough, not enough..."

Bruce felt himself getting close almost immediately, and he slammed harder into Tony, his hips smacking loudly against Tony's reddened ass. There was a consistent bumping sound accompanying the slaps, from Tony's forehead hitting the wall. In a matter of seconds, Bruce felt the tension building until he came with a scream, pinning Tony flush against the wall as his release filled Tony's beaten ass.

When he finished, Bruce pulled out and practically had to peel Tony off the wall. He shoved Tony at the bedroom door and muttered bitterly, "Get out."

Tony stumbled, his legs hardly functioning and his head, ass, and cock aching more than they ever had before. Bruce's cum had started to leak between Tony's buttocks, but Bruce didn't notice because he refused to look at Tony.

When Tony didn't respond right away to Bruce's demand, he repeated himself louder, "I said get out. GET OUT!" Bruce roared, his features twisting and turning green for a moment. Tony managed to grab his pants from the floor before stumbling out of the room without a word or so much as a glance at Bruce.

Bruce slammed the bedroom door shut, and ran a shaking hand through his sweat-dampened hair. His towel was on the floor, and Tony's shirt was a few feet away, dangling off a corner of the bed. Bruce braved a glance at the wall by the door, and saw a damp area from Tony's forehead, and further down a smaller one from Tony's cock. He looked down at his hands, and saw a smear of blood in his right hand. Where had that even come from?

He sank to his knees on the floor and released a deep-throated roar. He could feel his skin stretching, and the pain of how it felt like it was tearing at the seams, revealing an unnatural green underneath. He clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut, not even trying to fight it, because he deserved it. As he grew painfully larger, he was vaguely aware of an alarm going off in the background...


	8. Not Banner

Hulk opened his eyes once the pain subsided, and looked around him. There were familiar glass walls surrounding him, trapping him inside his bedroom. He'd never put much thought into the high ceilings and gap slots in the floor around his bedroom in Stark Tower, but now it made sense. The cage walls rose from below him (that also explained his level being the basement of Stark Tower) and connected to corresponding slots in the ceiling. The cage walls stopped just short of the bedroom walls, so the bedroom door could close to block the cage from view of the rest of the apartment.

He grunted and looked around, noticing that the furniture that had come with the apartment space had either folded back into the walls or been lowered similarly beneath the floor and into the sub-basement. It's not as if Stark Industries couldn't afford the cost of any damage he would have caused to the furniture. Cameras had also dropped down from the corners of the bedroom, which explained the lack of spectators standing on the other side of the glass.

He heard a sound from the front of the apartment, and snarled when he recognized the sound of the front door slamming shut.

Director Fury was approaching the cage, and Hulk fisted the floor, angry anxiety increasing his already through-the-roof heart rate. Stopping just short of the glass, Fury spoke sternly.

"What are you doing, Banner?" Hoping to intimidate, Hulk stomped over to the glass and stared down Fury, his chest heaving and his breath fogging the glass above the Director's head. Bruce Banner was hanging by a thread in his mind, so he had one fist covering himself, conscious of his nudity. Fury's attention was focused on holding eye contact with Hulk when he asked, "Do you have any idea the amount of people you have endangered?"

"Do you have any idea how hard this is to CONTROL?" Hulk demanded loudly, punching the glass with no effect. He didn't even get the satisfaction of bruised knuckles. The Hulk was too tough to hurt.

"SHIELD has been keeping your presence in this city and your identity a secret for your sake as well as our own. You're lucky we've kept this contained this long, but there's no telling what some of the lower-level agents will say when they go home tonight. Now I'm going to ask you again: _What. Are. You. Doing?"_

"You think I like this? This is no party trick! I don't do this for FUN!" Hulk's vocal volume was incredibly difficult to control; it had an unnerving tendency to rise with each word.

"Then tell me HOW this happened, Dr. Banner," Fury replied, calm as ever. His calm only made Hulk angrier, driving Bruce Banner further into his subconscious. "And stop shouting at me."

"NOT SHOUTING!" Hulk roared, pounding both fists against the glass. He turned away and paced angrily from one side of the cage to the other. He had to focus, had to bring Bruce back, but Hulk was taking control very quickly.

"Tell me what happened!" Fury insisted, pounding his own fist on the glass.

Something about Fury finally showing impatience pleased Hulk. From where he sat in the back of the cage, he bellowed, "PROVOKED!"

Fury's eyebrows shot up, but then realization dawned on his face and he narrowed his eyes. "By who?"

Hulk punched the floor in frustration and roared when it didn't even leave a dent. He continually pounded the floor, becoming more and more frustrated when his blows left no mark aside from flattening the carpet.

"Who provoked you, Banner?"

"NOT BANNER!" Hulk bellowed and pounded his chest angrily.

Something like pity passed over Fury's face before he brought back his typical stoic expression and asked again, "Who provoked you, Hulk?" The Hulk glared at Fury, but did not respond, and simply stood there, his wide green nostrils flaring with each breath. "Answer me when I am talking to you! Who provoked you?"

Hulk's response was a roar that would have shaken the building if it weren't for the SHIELD cage that contained him and muted any sound he made from distant ears. "STARK."

Fury nodded, his suspicions confirmed, and spoke into a walkie talkie he'd taken from inside his jacket. "We got our information. Take down Hulk, and find me Mr. Stark."


	9. Security Breach

Tony finished his long, guilty shower and ignored the buzzer that started ringing as he toweled off. He examined himself in the mirror to check for any injury where he was sore from earlier that afternoon. His face and forehead were bruised badly, and were already a deep shade of purple. He felt the bruises gently, and slowly moved his fingers towards the back of his head where he'd had one of his AI servants stitch it up for him. His head still ached, despite the Advil, and the novacaine injection had faded quickly in his shower.

Whoever was at the door had given up on the buzzer by the time Tony had strode into his bedroom to get dressed. He wasn't planning on leaving the Tower anytime soon, so he opted for loose gray sweatpants and a Led Zeppelin T-shirt. He tamed his hair as best he could without the use of a comb, and walked into his living room to check out some pay-per-views.

When he entered the living room, however, he found Director Fury and Pepper waiting for him. Pepper was talking to someone on the phone, clearly agitated, but upon seeing Tony, she muttered, "I'll call you back," and snapped the phone shut.

"Uh... security breach!" Tony said, pointing at Fury and looking at Pepper, simultaneously blaming her for the breach and expecting her to fix it.

Fury cleared his throat, however, and Pepper ducked out of the apartment. "You look pretty banged up for a man who hasn't left the building in a few days."

"Yeah, well. My AI bots are still a work in progress, and a bit clumsy, so-"

"Don't lie to me, Mr. Stark," Fury warned, dipping down his chin and looking at Tony over imaginary glasses. Tony swallowed nervously and wondered if Fury still had ocular muscles in his eye socket behind the eyepatch.

"No, seriously, they are _really_ clumsy. In fact, the other day, one of them-"

"What happened between you and Dr. Banner, Mr. Stark?" Fury interrupted, cutting straight to the point.

"I think that's none of your business. As I recall, you've made it beyond clear that you don't want to know a damn thing about any of it."

"You know what I meant. I was referring to what happened _today_."

Tony feigned thoughtful consideration and replied, "Yeah... _still_ not your business," and walked over to his bar in the kitchen.

"It IS my business when one of my agents is provoked to the point of no return, where it puts my entire staff as well as civilians in grave danger."

"Well, if you must know," Tony began fixing himself a drink, pointedly neglecting to offer one to Fury, "Dr. Banner and I had a disagreement. We argued, and we both got angry. It's not MY fault that his anger turns him into a green rage monster."

"That's not how he tells it," the Director replied, lifting one arm to rest a finger and thumb to his chin thoughtfully.

"Oh? How does he tell it, Director? It must be a fascinating tale, coming from a beast who struggles with words that are more than two syllables, let alone stringing entire sentences together."

"Actually, he made himself quite clear in just two syllables. Do you want to know what those syllables were?"

Tony took a swig of his whiskey and leaned forward on the counter as he said, "Enthrall me, Fury. I'm on the edge of my seat."

"Provoked. He said he was provoked."

Tony slammed his glass on the counter and declared loudly, "Bullshit!"

"I don't think Dr. Banner is capable of lying in his current condition, Mr. Stark."

"He's not Dr. Banner anymore," Tony muttered, downing the rest of his drink before continuing, his voice thick from the burn of alcohol in his throat, "He's the Hulk now."

"Did you see him transform, Mr. Stark?" The Director asked with eyebrows raised.

"Damnit! Would you stop calling me that?" Tony shouted, "I don't need anybody's respect right now!" The Director's eyebrows rose higher, and Tony lowered his voice back to a normal volume and added, "I didn't, but I knew he was about to. I was the one who pulled the alarm."

"You cover your mistakes well, Tony," the Director remarked, and Tony let out a dry laugh.

"The alarm wouldn't be there if it wasn't for me. It was my idea."

"And we wouldn't have needed it today if it wasn't for you, either."

Tony smirked and said, "You don't know that."

There was a silence while Tony fell back into his leather sofa and turned on the widescreen plasma on the wall. There was a Yankees game on, and Tony changed the channel to a boxing match.

"If all it takes to turn Banner into the Hulk is an argument with his boyfriend-"

"_Not _his boyfriend," Tony interrupted to point out without looking away from the TV.

"Not anymore, you're not," Fury remarked.

"Never was," Tony said, glaring over his shoulder at the Director.

"Well now you're no longer allowed to work with each other. Once he turns back into himself and explains what happened, we're keeping you two professionally AND socially separated."

"Are we teenagers now? Do we have a curfew too?"

"When you act like children, you get treated like children," the Director said sternly, "Babysitting was never in my job description, nor will it ever be."

"Yeah, if I recall, that was Coulson's area. Your best agent, and you put him in babysitting."

"Don't you talk to me about how I run SHIELD, or how I treat my agents, dead or alive," Director Fury's tone was dangerous now, and Tony didn't have the energy to pick another fight, so he let it go, and let Fury continue. "But back to the subject at hand: This was me trying to be fair, Tony, and I've run out of patience with you. Expect to see me again very soon."

"Yeah, whatever," Tony replied, realizing he was acting like an unreasonable teenager, but he didn't care. The door shut behind him, and Tony focused on the boxing match. The smaller man was bouncing around, jutting fake punches at the larger one, ducking and diving under the larger man's swings, until the larger man grunted and decked the smaller one, splintering his face into a crumpled, bloody mess and knocking him out in an instant.


	10. The End of a Long Day

Bruce woke up with a splitting headache, and he groaned as he slowly sat upright. He was on the floor of his bedroom with a blanket covering him, and the cage walls were still up. There was a large arrow on the floor next to him that resembled Hawkeye's style, but the specific design was not familiar to Bruce. He examined it for a moment, and noted that it appeared to have previously contained some sort of liquid, almost like a syringe would. His thoughts became distracted quickly, however, as his bladder was uncomfortably full and his mouth was dry.

"Hey! Excuse me?" Bruce waved an arm feebly at one of the cameras in the corner of the room, "I could really use some access to my bathroom right now." He spread his arms out, allowing the blanket to fall into his lap, "See? No more green." There was a pause before a loud DING resounded in the room, followed by the whirring of machinery as the walls slid down like car windows until they were hidden beneath the floor, and the cameras shut off and withdrew into the ceiling, where tiles seamlessly slid to cover their niches. "Thank you."

On his way to the bathroom, Bruce gathered some clothes from his dresser so he could clean himself up and be decent when he emerged for the inevitable interview with Fury. After relieving himself and checking for injuries, he swallowed some Advil and started his shower. He remembered in a vague fuzzy way that he'd been talking to Fury after turning, but a fog and then blackness seemed to eat up their conversation after only a few exchanges.

As much as he hated being distrusted (though he honestly could not blame SHIELD for it), he was glad to know he had a safe place where he knew he would hurt no one if he turned.

Ten minutes later, he was dressed and finally leaving his bedroom for the first time in several hours when he heard the buzzer. Surprised that Fury was bothering to use it, Bruce walked over and opened the door.

"Feeling better, Dr. Banner?" Director Fury asked as he strode past Bruce into the apartment.

"Somewhat," Bruce replied, closing the door and rubbing his forehead as if it would discourage the headache from building.

"I'm going to cut to the chase here, Doctor. What happened this afternoon?" Fury stood with his hands clasped in front of himself, his one eye trained steadily on the nervous scientist.

Bruce released a long, weary sigh before he spoke. "Tony and I got into an argument about a personal matter, and I got angry. I asked him to leave, and instead he baited me to become angrier. I took the bait, and I couldn't keep from turning."

"I see," Fury said, nodding. He appeared to be lost in thought for a moment before adding, "I appreciate your honesty, Doctor."

"What choice do I have?" Bruce asked, throwing his arms out to his sides. The director averted his eye momentarily, looking down at the floor, as though he was about to ask an uncomfortable question. Bruce saved him the trouble, however, and said, "Look, I don't remember anything I said or did after I turned. I hardly remember what I did immediately before." A pause, then, timidly, "Is Tony alright?"

"He looks like he picked a fight with the wrong guy, but he didn't come out of it so bad," Fury replied.

"Good," Bruce murmured, relieved he hadn't seriously hurt his friend, no matter how he may have deserved it. "Good."

"Now, I've already informed Mr. Stark of this, but I will be prohibiting the two of you from working together professionally from this point forward. And if you could avoid each other socially as well, that is also reccomended."

"Right, of course," Bruce nodded and then asked, "What... what happened, um, after I turned?"

Director Fury's gaze softened slightly, noticeable only in his singular eye, and he explained slowly, "You seemed upset, and it seemed like you were trying to hold the anger back. It came out, though, and you managed to say you were provoked. We had a tranquilizer deployed when you got angrier, and you were sedated for several hours."

"That would explain the arrow," Bruce said with a small smile. "Was Clint sent in, with me still in there?"

"No. Agent Barton did produce the arrow and sedative, but we had it mechanically launched. And I'm afraid that's all I can tell you, given that you share the same brain as the Hulk. We don't want him knowing all our tricks."

"Oh. No, you're right. I understand," Bruce couldn't hide his disappointment; as a scientist, curiosity was first nature to him, but he knew how things stood. He was probably the best equipped to come up with technology to restrain the Other Guy, but he couldn't trust himself with that information. The Other Guy was much more clever than people tended to assume. That was dangerous enough on its own.

"Have you made any progress with those lab copies Agent Romanoff obtained?" The Director asked.

"No, I..." Bruce rubbed his forehead. Despite the apparent hours he'd just spent sedated, he needed a rest. It had been a very long day, between his intimate encounter with Natasha, then his argument with Tony, the angry sex, and the Other Guy showing up.

"Get some rest, Doctor. I'll expect a preliminary report in 24," the Director turned to leave, and Bruce ran a hand through his thick hair.

"Director," Bruce began, and the director turned to look over his shoulder, "Thanks for, uh..." Bruce shrugged, and shoved his hands into his pockets, "Not killing me, or making me leave."

"Dr. Banner," Fury turned around and rested a hand on Bruce's shoulder, "If we sent our agents away whenever they endangered the lives of the others, we wouldn't have any left." Fury flashed a rare smile then, and Bruce returned it gratefully. "Goodnight, Doctor."


	11. The Genius and the Playboy

"Alright, Angry, let's face it: we need to talk," Tony Stark's voice echoed loudly in Bruce's laboratory for the first time in two weeks. Bruce had to admit, he'd started to miss it.

"I agree, but we'd be off to a much better start if you didn't call me that," Bruce called back as he wrapped up notes he was typing up on an experiment he'd been running.

"Fair enough. I don't call you Angry, you don't turn green. Do we have ourselves a deal?" Tony asked, offering his hand as he approached the table Bruce was working at.

The doctor saved his work and wiped the screen into an idling state before turning to face Tony. The bruises had long since healed, but his face looked worn and tired, like he hadn't been getting enough sleep.

"Deal," Bruce grasped Tony's hand, and they shook on it.

"So, let's review," Tony said, and began counting points on his fingers, watching Bruce carefully as he went through each one. "We slept together regularly for roughly ten months, you slept with Natasha two weeks ago, I got jealous, we argued, you pounded me into the wall and Hulked out."

Bruce nodded, looking away when Tony mentioned Natasha, then looking back at Tony in surprise when he admitted that he'd been jealous, but then looked back down at his feet when Tony mentioned the angry sex.

"Well, we're in your lab right now, so you're the home team. I'll bat first, then," Tony reasoned carefully, raising his eyebrows at Bruce to test if his suggestion was fair. Bruce folded his arms across his chest and gestured for Tony to continue. "Okay, well, first, I'm sorry for being a giant douchebag. I'm not as self-absorbed as I used to be, but it's still a work in progress. Second, it was a bad idea to provoke you, which is also something I'm still working on. So, you know I'm not one to apologize often, but that's what this is. A genuine apology, from yours truly," Tony's mouth twitched very briefly in a nervous half-smile before he added, "But, um, I just can't help but ask, how exactly did that happen? With you and Agent Romanoff?"

Bruce looked down bashfully and unfolded and refolded his arms before answering Tony. "Um, thank you, for the, uh, the apology. I do appreciate that. But, um, as far as Natasha goes... it was just one of those things. Like with our first time. It just happened."

Tony listened attentively to Bruce's awkward response, and when he finished, asked, "When you said... you said before that you didn't fuck her, but that you made love to her," Tony paused, frowning in thought before continuing, "You said I didn't understand the difference. I do know the difference, for the record-"

"I know you know the difference, Tony," Bruce interrupted, but Tony held up his hand for Bruce to stop talking.

"Not done talking yet, An...Bruce," Tony saved himself from saying 'Angry,' and Bruce pretended not to notice. "What I was saying, was that I do know the difference, but it's something I haven't done in a very long time. When people start using you because you're rich and famous, I started using people because they were attractive. I guess I just lost the sincerity in it along the way." Tony shrugged and picked up a piece of equipment, fiddling with it nervously.

"What about Pepper?" Bruce asked. Pepper and Tony had been on edge before Bruce had come into the picture, so he knew he wasn't responsible for the split. He hoped now, though, that they might be able to try again.

Tony shrugged again and said, "That's about as sincere as I ever got with anyone, but she still wanted more."

"But she knows you enough to know better than to expect that," Bruce pointed out.

"Yeah, well, women never follow reason with that sort of thing, do they?" Tony asked, and Bruce avoided comment. He turned his thoughts back to the issue at hand instead.

"So... in the spirit of honesty here... are you just using me for the sex, or...?"

Tony cleared his throat and scratched his head, pointedly avoiding eye contact with Bruce, and he responded with one of his indifferent shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe."

Bruce smiled, somewhat bitterly, as he was not surprised by Tony's answer and said, "Alright, let me rephrase the question. Were you, at any point, interested in being in a committed relationship?"

"No," Tony answered quickly, taking a half-step back and finally making eye contact with Bruce.

"Okay, good," Bruce nodded, "good."

"Wait, what?" Tony's eyebrows twisted into a confused expression. He was not used to people responding that way when he made his intentions clear.

"I wasn't either," Bruce said with an open-armed shrug.

"You don't strike me as the fuck-buddy type, Dr. Banner. I'm having some trouble buying your story here," Tony narrowed his eyes suspiciously, pointing the piece of equipment he'd been fiddling with at the scientist.

"That's because I'm not," Bruce explained, grabbing the metal rod from Tony and tossing it into a drawer. Tony Stark didn't like being handed things, and Bruce Banner didn't like things being pointed at him. "That's not something I do. But I did it, for a little while anyway, with you. Oddly enough, it was an exercise in self-control."

"You used less self-control with sex to gain more self-control over the Other Guy," Tony reasoned slowly, as he began to understand. Bruce nodded and turned his back on Tony as a screen lit up and started beeping, results from a test flashing on the glass. "So you were using me to get over your anger issues?"

"I can't get over them; I can only learn to control it, but yes, that's what I was doing," Bruce responded without turning around as he pulled his glasses from his shirt pocket to read the results flashing at him.

"Was," Tony echoed after a moment, "You said was. That's past tense."

"That's because I don't intend to continue doing it," Bruce explained, taking his glasses off as he turned back to face Tony, "I figured that would be alright with you."

"Yeah, no, that's totally fine. I figured as much, given how things went last time," Tony nodded, and became absorbed in his own thoughts until he felt Bruce's eyes on him. He looked up and saw the doctor giving him a strange, inquisitive look. "What?"

"You got jealous last time. You're sure you're okay with this?" Bruce asked gently.

"What? Of course I'm okay with it," Tony replied, "You do realize that I wasn't jealous of Agent Romanoff, right? I was jealous of _you_, for getting in bed with her."

"Right. Just making sure. Like you already pointed out, I'm not the 'fuck-buddy' type. It'll take a while for my conscience to clear up on this one."

"Why? Because you think it's immoral to fuck around like I do?" Tony asked in an accusatory tone; it wasn't offensive against Bruce, but more defensive for himself.

"It's not my business what you do, but it's not something I'm comfortable doing," Bruce explained, turning back to the screen and putting his glasses back on.

"Fair enough," Tony clapped his hands together, startling the doctor, and said, "Well, it was fun for me while it lasted."

Bruce turned around, but kept his glasses on as he said, "I will admit to that much. Are we still on good terms, then?" Tony nodded and threw a hand out towards Bruce as an answer, and the two shook hands. "Now if you don't mind, I've got some work to do here," Bruce gestured to the screens behind him, three lit up with data and various tables, and two with flashing results of some sort of chemical test.

"Not at all. I've got a half-finished suit waiting for me upstairs," Tony said as he crossed the room to leave.

When the door closed and locked automatically behind Tony, Bruce breathed a sigh of relief. He could finally focus entirely on his work and research, without being guiltily distracted by a certain genius billionaire playboy philanthropist.


	12. Just a Drink

"…and if my tests turn out the way I think they will, you won't have to run the cooler on full blast, and it saves power for the suit overall."

"You are unbelievable," Tony declared as he followed Bruce's notes throughout the doctor's explanation.

Bruce smiled modestly and said, "It was just a possibility you overlooked, that's all."

But Tony was talking over the doctor, mostly to himself, as he scrolled through the tables and calculations, saying, "This is actually possible. It could really work. Unbelievable. Bruce, you are an invaluable member of my team here," Tony turned from the screens and grasped Bruce's shoulders, continuing enthusiastically, "You are absolutely brilliant! I could kiss you right now!" For a moment, the billionaire appeared to consider it, but ultimately did not and thudded Bruce on the back instead.

The doctor was smiling at the billionaire's enthusiasm, and as the latter hopped down the steps of the platform and headed towards the holographic suit model, Bruce asked, "So it's a team now? Have you hired unsuspecting SHIELD interns, or does Jarvis count as a member now?"

"I have not, and he does not, but that's not a bad idea," Tony said, pointing a stylus at Bruce as he added the doctor's hypothetical new software to the hologram to see how it lined up with the pre-existing components. "About the interns, I mean," he added quickly, spinning the hologram around and expanding it to get a closer look.

"I have a feeling Ms. Hill wouldn't let you get away with that," Bruce remarked, removing his glasses and folding them carefully.

"I'm sure I could charm her into an agreement if I wanted to," Tony said with his trademark wink before waving the holographic suit to the side and pulling up the current suit alongside it.

"You could probably formally set up a program where you trained new agents coming into the R&D division. A program where new agents get trained by Tony Stark himself would definitely bring in more applicants for the job," Bruce mused, tapping the folded arms of his glasses against his bottom lip.

Tony scoffed at the idea and said, "You seem to be forgetting that I don't play well with others."

"You don't have to. You could easily just stand in front of a lecture hall and talk at a bunch of students. Remember, I'm only helpful to you here because you explained everything to me so well in the first place," Bruce pointed out, pointing his glasses at Tony as he spoke.

"I wouldn't have the patience. And that doesn't count, because you already knew how most of this worked. It was just the coding you needed me to explain, really. You're a genius like me, so I can stand having you around. Those kids, though? No way, man." Finished with the holograms, Tony shut the small console down and leaned against it to face Bruce.

"That's high praise coming from you," Bruce remarked with raised eyebrows, "thank you."

Tony waved it off and started backing towards the elevator to head upstairs for the night. Jerking a thumb over his shoulder, he offered, "Wanna come up for a drink?" Bruce hesitated, and Tony said, "Come on, I'm not going to seduce you. It's just a drink."

"Alright," Bruce conceded, and Tony flashed perfect teeth at him before turning and opening the elevator doors.

As the elevator rose to the next floor of Stark Tower, Tony said, "Did you really think I was luring you up here to get you in bed with me?"

Bruce shrugged helplessly as the doors opened and he followed the billionaire into the most expensive apartment in New York and said, "I never know what to expect with you, Tony."

"Well there's one thing you should know about me by now," Tony began as he retrieved glasses from under the bar, "and that's the fact that I am _never _subtle."

Bruce leaned against the back of the black leather sofa and smiled, realizing that he shouldn't have been suspicious of Tony's drink offering, because he was right. Starks were known for a lot of things, but subtlety was not one of them.

"That said," Tony continued, sliding the customary root beer across the counter to the doctor before pouring whiskey for himself, "How's everything with Agent Romanoff?"

Bruce took a sip of his soda and shrugged. "We're just friends, Tony. I'm not really interested, and she's already with somebody."

"That seems to be your routine," Tony remarked into his glass before taking a swig of whiskey.

"What is?" Bruce asked, lowering his glass.

Tony looked at Bruce evenly as he said, almost off-handedly, "Sleeping with people and then just being friends afterwards."

Bruce's brow formed a stern line as he asked slowly, suspiciously, "What do you mean by that, exactly?"

Tony shrugged and broke eye contact, looking everywhere but at Bruce as he said, "I just mean, for a guy who goes on about committed relationships, you don't seem too inclined to get involved in anything beyond casual fucking." Tony's statement concluded in a mumble into his whiskey, and he feigned a sudden intense interest in something out the window at the other side of the room.

Bruce took a deep breath, and not allowing himself to get angry, he replied calmly, staring into his half-empty glass of root beer, "It's difficult for a guy like me to find anybody who's interested in a long-term relationship."

"Well, I'm interested." Bruce was so startled by Tony's admission that his eyes darted up to Tony's face, making accidental eye contact. That was a mistake, because it seemed to trigger an explanatory mechanism in Tony, who began half-rambling in a nervous rush, "I mean, let's face the facts here, Bruce. I've hardly been interested in anybody else since we got involved with each other, and if I was, it was for showing off. You're a smart man who gets what I do and you don't care that I'm an arrogant son-of-a-bitch, just the same way that I don't mind the fact that you have a tendency to turn into an angry monster. If you're looking for someone who doesn't care about the Other Guy, I'm standing right here."

Bruce set his glass gently, soundlessly, on the granite countertop and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Tony, we discussed this already. I said—"

Tony interrupted with a raised index finger, "Yeah, I know. I was there too, if you recall," Bruce gave him a look, but he went on, "You said that you're not the type of guy who fucks someone and then sneaks out before breakfast. We already fucked, so why not try me and let's just see how it works out?"

"Why the sudden interest in a relationship?" Bruce asked in an accusatory tone, "You said that you prefer to avoid relationships, and that with me, you were only ever interested in the sex."

"I never said that," Tony defended himself quickly, nearly talking over the doctor's words, "All I said is that's what I've been doing for years. And yeah, with you, I was initially only interested in the sex, but you're a good man, Bruce. Sue me for wanting to get romantically involved."

"But you're Tony Stark," Bruce argued, struggling to understand, "you're Mr. No Strings Attached. As far as romance goes, you and I are complete opposites."

"Are we? Look at your behavior for the past year, and you might want to re-think that," Tony retorted, taking a sip of whiskey and adding, "And just because I fly around in a robotic suit, doesn't mean that I am a robot. I have feelings, and lately, they've been focused on you." Tony gestured towards Bruce with his glass on his last word before emptying it and leaning forward with both hands on the edge of the countertop, looking expectantly at Dr. Banner.

"I don't…" the doctor sighed, and threw his arms out to his sides, palms up in a shrug. "I don't know what to say, Tony. I'll… I have to think about this. Let me sleep on it, alright?"

Tony hung his head, either in disappointment or exhaustion (Bruce couldn't tell which), and the sigh that followed seemed to indicate exhaustion. He leaned back from the counter, however, and nodded without looking at Bruce. "Fair enough," he said, clearing his throat as he removed the glasses from the counter and set them down in the sink. There was a small dishwasher in the bar, but Tony preferred to use his hands, much like with his work downstairs in the lab.

"I'll check in with you tomorrow afternoon, once my results are in for this new compound," Bruce said as he turned to leave. Tony raised his hand in a casual farewell, and let it fall limply to his side when the door was closed behind the doctor. He remembered suddenly that he'd received a text during his conversation with Bruce, and dug his phone out of his pocket to see who and what it was.

Text from Pepper: "How'd it go?"

His reply: "TBD"


	13. Feel Like Making Love

Bruce walked into Tony's workspace to find the billionaire with his back to the door, re-working details on the new suit's boot thrusters. Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll" was on full blast, which meant volume level 11. Tony's maximum stereo volume was actually 100, but he'd tweaked it so that the volume would go up from 99 to 11 instead of 100. That way, he could tell Jarvis to "turn it up to eleven" and his music would be blasting at full volume. Tony had been aghast when Bruce failed to understand the reference, so he'd promptly forced Bruce to sit down and watch _Spinal Tap_. Bruce had to admit, it was a great movie.

"I got the test results!" Bruce shouted over the music as he strode purposefully across the room. When Tony turned around, Bruce held up a handful of print-outs from his lab downstairs.

"Jarvis, take the music down to 50 and shut it off when the song's over," Tony shouted over the din as Bruce approached him, suddenly anxious as he felt Bruce's decision also approaching.

Bruce dropped the papers on the desk beside Tony, and the billionaire stood up to read them with some over-the-shoulder explanation from Bruce. He'd hardly risen from his seat, however, when Bruce took Tony's face in his hands and kissed him with equal parts firmness and gentility. Tony blindly tossed the papers onto the desk and returned Bruce's kiss hesitantly, afraid to push too far, for fear that Bruce would withdraw.

Bruce was showing no signs of stopping, however, as he slowly deepened the kiss, parting his lips against Tony's. The billionaire slid his hands down from Bruce's back to seize the scientist's ass, but Bruce's hands followed and pulled Tony's hands back up to his waist instead.

"Not so fast," Bruce murmured against Tony's lips with a smile.

"I'm not a patient man, Bruce," Tony replied, but his hands remained obediently on the doctor's hips.

"I don't want to fuck you, Tony," Bruce whispered against Tony's ear, and he felt Tony's body stiffen at his words. He took a moment to press his lips against the billionaire's temple before continuing, "I want to make love to you."

Tony half hummed, half moaned into Bruce's mouth, and his grip on Bruce's waist tightened. He inhaled sharply through his nose when the scientists' tongue slid into his mouth. When Tony's tongue made a play for dominance, a cautionary sound came from Bruce's throat, and much like with his wandering hands, Tony stood down obediently. He didn't want to push Bruce too far and spoil the moment.

Bruce seemed intent on exploring every inch of Tony's mouth; he dragged his tongue across the backs of the genius's teeth, slid it over his gums, and gently teased the roof of Tony's mouth before finally encouraging Tony's impatient tongue to do as it pleased.

Tony's original plan was to do some good old-fashioned mouth-to-mouth tongue-fucking the way he knew Bruce's sensitive mouth liked, but after what the shorter man had just done to raise the tiny hairs on the back of Tony's neck, he decided to go for a different approach.

He toyed with Bruce's tongue for the brief time that it remained in his mouth before bringing it to Bruce's lips, tracing them delicately, which left Bruce pleasantly surprised with a quiet sigh. If he wasn't so intent on his current experiment in gentle tongue play, Tony would have laughed at Bruce's immediate response.

Tony's tongue was barely in Bruce's mouth yet, but Bruce was already starting to moan as Tony was tracing the inside of Bruce's lips at an agonizingly slow pace. The billionaire playboy wanted desperately to speed things up, but the scientist had made it clear that he was the one in charge, so Tony tortured Bruce's mouth until the latter made a move to change the pace.

Soon enough, the scientist pulled away from Tony and looked up at him, his eyes heavy-lidded with lust. Tony's mouth turned up into a crooked, cocky grin and he said, "I take it you're willing to give this relationship thing a try."

"I am, yeah," Bruce replied, almost bashfully.

"This could fail spectacularly, you know," Tony pointed out casually, the smile never leaving his eyes.

"It was your idea," Bruce remarked, his fingers absently tracing Tony's pecs.

"Hey, don't pin this on me!" Tony exclaimed, throwing his hands up defensively.

Bruce laughed and leaned closer to Tony as he said, "I'm thinking about pinning something else on you at the moment," and looked up at Tony through lust-glazed eyes.

"Mmm, by all means do," Tony murmured, leaning closer to Bruce. They started kissing again, and Tony pulled away just long enough to tell Jarvis to lower the lab bed. When the mechanical whirring stopped, Bruce removed Tony's shirt as he backed him towards the bed. While Bruce removed his own shirt, Tony took off his pants, and they fell on the bed together, Bruce still in his jeans on top of Tony in his boxers.

Bruce shifted so that their hips lined up and though they both sighed at the contact, Tony winced. "What's wrong?" Bruce asked.

Tony shut his eyes as he replied, "Nothing. Your jeans… on my dick. It's rough. Good rough."

Bruce grinned, and ground his hips against Tony's, causing Tony to grunt as his eyes rolled back. "Like that?"

"Nngh!" Tony grunted and managed to say in choppy pieces, "Two… can play… at this game." He shoved his hand between their crotches and squeezed Bruce's bulge mercilessly.

"Oh! God!" Bruce cried out, surprising both himself and Tony, who chuckled deep in his throat.

"You like that," Tony observed with a cocky grin.

Bruce got his breath back before saying, "Do that again, and I'll come in my pants."

Tony's eyes widened, and he said, "What are you, fourteen?"

"Shut up," Bruce blushed slightly, and shoved Tony's face into the pillow to plant a trail of kisses along the back and side of his neck. There was no biting or sucking; just kissing and licking that was making Tony hum like an idling engine.

"I don't know what you're trying to accomplish here," Tony mumbled into the pillow, "If it's some prolonged foreplay record or what. But if you don't get your dick inside my ass soon, I'll have my _foot_ up yours."

"Your foot? I don't think so," Bruce murmured against Tony's shoulder, but he was getting impatient now too. The doctor straightened and hopped off the bed to quickly remove his jeans and boxer-briefs.

Bruce climbed back into bed to straddle Tony, and leaned forward to kiss him as a distraction while his hands wandered elsewhere. He took both their cocks in hand, stroking them together. This elicited a sigh from Tony who watched attentively, almost mesmerized, as Bruce's fingers and cock rubbed against his own in Bruce's strong and gentle hand. Bruce himself was nearly getting lost in the enjoyment of the friction, but he stopped after a few moments and released his grip.

Leaning forward, Bruce licked his lips and started kissing his way down Tony's neck. He pressed his lips down to the collarbone, down the center of his muscular chest, paying careful attention to the sensitive skin surrounding the arc reactor, and following the muscles that bottlenecked into the billionaire's crotch. Tony sucked in a sharp breath for each kiss that Bruce planted on his erect penis, and made an unexpected whimpering noise when the scientist pressed his lips on the glistening tip.

"Warning you, Angry," Tony struggled tensely to speak for how strung out he was, "My foot, your ass." Bruce grinned and pulled Tony's legs up over his shoulders, kissing each thigh three times. Tony continued shakily, "You think I'm kidding? Just— Oh, _fuck_!"Tony's eyes flashed wide open as Bruce's lips made contact with his hole. More obscenities flew from Tony's mouth as Bruce's tongue got involved, and when it breached Tony's entrance, the billionaire's legs squeezed Bruce's shoulders.

Bruce withdrew quickly, as they'd never done this before, and he wanted to be mindful of Tony's comfort. "What's wrong?"

"I swear to God, Bruce, if you don't get back down there in the next three seconds…"

Bruce laughed, realizing that Tony's reflex had been a good one, and bent his head back down to Tony's ass, soliciting another senseless string of obscenities and praise from the billionaire.

"Shit, fuck, _damnit!_ How are you _doing_ that? Fuck, you're amazing. Oh! Yes, there, fuck!" Bruce's tongue was doing things to Tony that the playboy himself didn't know were possible. He'd run out of expletives to use, so now he was moaning loudly instead. As if the tongue-fucking itself wasn't glorious enough, just seeing Bruce's curly head bowed between his legs doing something so obscenely dirty and viciously intimate was nearly enough to finish him off right then and there.

"Fuck—Bruce, darling, love of my life, if you keep this up any longer, I'm gonna—"

Bruce laughed and withdrew his head from between Tony's legs, repositioning himself and Tony so that he was kneeling between the billionaire's outstretched legs. Tony watched the scientist intently, the heat in his gaze burning something in the pit of Bruce's stomach.

Conveniently, Bruce had no need whatsoever for any lube, as Tony's hole was wet from his ministrations, and his cock was leaking copious amounts of pre-cum. Without any irksome stalling to find and apply lube, Bruce pushed himself all the way in, and both men groaned in relief at the contact they'd been aching for.

Tony made to hoist his legs back up to Bruce's shoulders, but the scientist gestured for him to keep his legs down, and leaned forward so that he could kiss Tony. It was a chaste kiss, and a high contrast to the fact that Bruce was slowly moving inside of Tony. He leaned up on one arm so the other was free to jerk Tony off, but after a few slow strokes, the billionaire could tell it was a difficult position for Bruce, so he waved his hand away.

Leaning on both arms now and no longer multi-tasking, Bruce could focus on his thrusting. He moved slowly and gently, grazing Tony's prostate on every third hit. Tony was practically purring, moaning when Bruce came in at just the right angle. It was slower than Tony was used to, but he was definitely enjoying it.

"Mmm, Bruce," Tony murmured, running his hands up his partner's arms and down his back. He wanted to tell Bruce how good it felt to feel him sliding inside of him, and how he wished he could stay like that for hours, but most of the blood was drained from his brain, so all he could manage was a moan and Bruce's name.

Bruce grinned and paused in his torturously slow movements to lean forward and capture Tony's mouth with his. Their lips moved against each other in perfect synchronization, making wet sounds as they pulled apart to allow a tongue to slide in and a breathy moan to escape. Their kissing became more excited as the seconds passed, until Bruce finally broke away with a breathless sigh to bow his head against Tony's shoulder and start thrusting like he meant it. Tony moaned with no restraint as Bruce pounded into him, not angrily or rushed, but passionate and hell-bent on pleasing his lover. Tony had wrapped his hand around his cock, pumping and stroking in earnest, keeping time with Bruce's thrusting.

Tony quickly felt a sweat breaking on his brow as the heat rose in his every nerve ending, and as it continued building, he saw the same rising in Bruce. Tony watched as the muscles in Bruce's arms tensed to lift himself up to face him. They locked eyes, and suddenly Tony was there. "Oh! Oh, fuck! Bruce!" he cried, the scientist's name rising into a moan as Bruce felt the tight, hot muscles convulsing around his cock, and he came simultaneously with a roar, harder than he ever had before. He kept coming shot after shot, inside of Tony, and it felt like he wasn't ever going to stop. Tony's moan was still going, but finally fading as he lay still in exhaustion from a very long, intense orgasm that covered his stomach in a shining white mess.

"Shit!" Bruce said through gritted teeth as he came down, and it was all he could manage to pull out of Tony and collapse on top of him, their shining chests heaving against each other. Tony grunted when Bruce pulled out, leaving him feeling very empty and very wet.

"Holy mother of fucks!" Tony panted after a few minutes, "What was that?" Bruce could only laugh wearily in response; he couldn't string words together coherently just yet. It felt like his brain had just exploded inside of his skull. "That wasn't… human. I may never come again. I think I just spent all of it at once."

Bruce was laughing heartily now, and he kissed Tony's stunned mouth clumsily. He felt drunk. "God only knows how many times we've had sex before today, but that was… amazing."

Tony returned Bruce's kiss distractedly, but once Bruce had finished speaking, Tony grabbed his face and smashed their lips together in a crushing kiss that left them both breathless. After they pulled back from each other, Tony looked up at Bruce and said, "You were right, by the way," Bruce gave him a confused look, and he continued, "I definitely did not know the difference between making love and fucking. You have showed me the way. It's like those people you hear about, they go to prison and find Jesus, you know? You have shown me the light."

Bruce threw his head back and laughed, saying, "I've shown you the light? So 'the light' to you is making sweaty messes of ourselves?"

"Yes," Tony deadpanned, and while Bruce laughed, he made a face and shoved the scientist off from on top of him, adding, "Speaking of sweaty messes, you are disgusting right now. You're covered in sweat and cum. Get off."

"Like you can talk!" Bruce defended himself, gesturing to the smears of Tony's orgasm that remained on his stomach and hadn't been wiped off completely from Bruce lying on top of him. "You need a shower yourself."

"Well, despite the mess, I'm staying put for the next few minutes. My legs are not in working condition after that," Tony moved only his head to look at Bruce, who was making to get up off the bed.

"Well you can be lazy and enjoy the squalor all you want," Bruce said, sliding to the side of the bed, "but I'm getting a shower."

Tony's cocky grin flashed at Bruce from the other side of the bed as he said, "You're not going anywhere, Angry. Your muscles are in worse condition than mine right now."

Bruce only laughed in reply, but when he made to stand and walk across the room to the shower, his legs buckled and he fell into a heap on the floor. Tony guffawed, shamelessly snorting while he laughed at Bruce's pathetic fall.

"Shut up! You don't want me to get angry, do you?" Bruce threatened as he weakly collected himself and stood up shakily.

"Oh please," Tony's laughter faded, but his smile remained, "Godzilla does not have nearly enough energy to show up right now, so save your breath, Angry."

Bruce gave Tony the finger, and the billionaire responded by mouthing the words "I love you" and drawing a heart with his fingers before calling out, "Jarvis! Bad Company, 'Feel Like Making Love' and turn it up to eleven!"

"As you wish, sir," Jarvis replied, and while the music was being queued up, he added, "Dr. Banner, would you like the shower to be started for you?"

"Yes, please and thank you, Jarvis," Bruce said gratefully as he shuffled across the lab, completely naked, towards the bathroom. A familiar acoustic guitar started playing in the lab, and Tony sang along off-key.

"Baby, when I think about you, I think about looooove…"


	14. Epilogue

"I think you should skip out too," Tony said, walking across Bruce's lab to toss his empty bag of dried blueberries in the trash.

"We can't skip out, Tony," Bruce argued wearily; they had the same conversation every month when the Avengers team meeting came up. The doctor glanced at his watch and noted that the meeting started five minutes ago.

"Yes we can. See, it's all a matter of perspective, Doctor," Tony began as he turned to walk slowly back towards Bruce, "And the way I see it, I'm definitely not going. As for you, you're already late. So you may as well just not go. See? It's all a matter of perspective." Tony had stopped in front of Bruce now, and continued in a lower voice as he slowly knelt in front of the scientist, "And my perspective is looking _very _good from down here."

Bruce sighed and looked across the lab at the door to avoid looking at Tony kneeling and eyeing him up hungrily. "We have to go, Tony. They know we're here, so—_Oh, Jesus!_ Tony!" Bruce's initial exclamation was extremely pleased, but when he said Tony's name, he sounded frustrated.

Tony had seized the crotch of Bruce's jeans (which he wore more often now, upon Tony's insistence that he looked fantastic in them), which was the scientist's biggest weak point. Neither of them understood why, but whenever Tony grabbed Bruce through his pants like that, it turned his legs into jelly and made his face flush to match Tony's Iron Man suits. If he did it twice without warning, and within a certain time span, it made Bruce come in his pants like an over-eager teenager. Bruce hated it, but Tony couldn't get enough of it.

"Tony, please, we have to go," Bruce insisted through a strained voice, as if the playboy had a firm grip on his vocal chords as well.

"No we don't," Tony argued, but there was a sudden buzz before the door to Bruce's lab opened and Steve Rogers entered the room. From the front of the lab, a countertop obstructed any visitor's view of Tony, so at first all Steve saw was Bruce. But then, shamelessly, Tony's head and shoulders slowly rose above the counter until he was standing upright. Steve rolled his eyes, but his cheeks flushed slightly as he saw Tony appear from his incredibly suggestive position below the counter.

"We're kind of busy here," Tony said, annoyed that they'd sent someone to collect him and Bruce.

"Well you're supposed to be reporting downstairs for a meeting," Steve replied impatiently.

"Reporting? God, is _everything_ military to you?" Tony demanded in a condescending tone.

"I'm sorry, Steve," Bruce said politely, his cheeks not as red as they had been, but still slightly flushed, "We'll be down in a minute."

"Mmm, yes, that was the plan," Tony growled, wrapping an arm around Bruce and pulling him against his body. Steve looked away uncomfortably, and Bruce squirmed out of Tony's grasp.

"Tony, knock it off. Come on, we can—" Bruce stopped short halfway through his sentence at the extreme discomfort on poor Captain Rogers' face and corrected himself, "We'll do that after the meeting's over. Come on."

Steve smiled gratefully but still uncomfortably at Bruce, and turned to lead the way out of the laboratory. The scientist was practically dragging Tony out of the room, but the billionaire quickly surrendered and kissed the hand holding his as they walked out into the hallway that lead in one direction to office spaces and in the other towards the public elevator.

While they waited for the elevator, Tony leaned into Bruce and murmured against his ear, "You're gonna pay for making me go to this meeting, Banner. Maybe I'll just go fuck a hooker instead, and not let you watch."

"Oh, like you could fuck anyone else when you want me this bad," Bruce muttered back, and though he couldn't hear what they were saying, Steve kept his back to the two scientists and whistled to drown out their incoherent mumbling.

"I could if I damn well pleased," Tony shot back, nibbling on Bruce's ear lobe.

Bruce squeezed Tony's hand in his and replied, "Could you really?"

"I could," Tony bit down on Bruce's ear.

"I really doubt that."

"I will."

And somehow they ended up kissing each other madly, fiercely, and with heavy breathing that caught Steve's attention and made him turn around before he realized what it was.

"For goodness sake, you two! Knock it off!" Steve shouted, clearly flustered, and he stormed into the elevator that had just arrived with a ding.

"As a matter of fact, we will do just that," Tony said with a cheery smile as he darted back down the hallway, dragging Bruce behind him. They were giggling like children the whole way down to Bruce's apartment, and they fucked like rabbits once they got there.

That's the end of Scientific Pursuits, folks!

Thank you all SO MUCH for reading and leaving your wonderful reviews and helpful critiques!

I can't stress enough how amazing it is for me to get your constant feedback.

At any rate, this concludes my first science boyfriends series.

I definitely have hopes to write many more, as well as some one-shots!

So send me your requests and I'll fill them as best as I can!

Thanks again for reading!

Yours most gratefully,

Ezra


	15. Scientific Pursuits: The Soundtrack!

I put together a soundtrack for this fic, where for the most part, even the timing of the songs matches up to how long it takes you to read each chapter that corresponds to it.

For the most part, I tried to stick to music that I think Tony and/or Bruce would be into, so it would fit more realistically/comfortably into the storyline.

And instead of typical tracklisting numbers, I'm going to list the songs according to the chapter they belong to. 17 tracks total; roughly an hour's worth of music.

1. Do You Want To - Franz Ferdinand  
1. Hot Blooded - Foreigner  
2. Come Closer Together - Nine Inch Nails vs. The Beatles  
3. Urgent - Foreigner  
4. Dirty White Boy - Foreigner  
4. Hatefuck - The Bravery  
5. Everybody Wants You - Billy Squier  
5. Shook Me All Night Long - ACDC  
6. Dance, Dance Christa Paffgen - Anberlin  
7. Violence Fetish - Disturbed  
8. Man or Animal - Audioslave  
9. Hats Off to the Bull - Chevelle  
10. Animal I Have Become - Three Days Grace  
11. Don't Come Around Here No More - Tom Petty  
12. You, Looking at Me, Looking at You - Ozzy Osbourne  
13. Feel Like Making Love - Bad Company  
14. Can't Get Enough - Bad Company


End file.
